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WEBSTIR.N.Y.  14SM 

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CIHM/ICMH 

Microfiche 

Series. 


CIHJVI/ICIVIH 
Collection  de 
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Technical  and  Bibliographic  Notas/Notaa  tachniquas  at  bibliographiquaa 


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tha  usual  mathod  of  filming,  ara  chackad  balow. 


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Couvartura  da  coulaur 


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n   Covars  rastorad  and/or  laminatad/ 
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Colourad  mapa/ 

Cartas  gAographiquas  9n  coulaur 


Colourad  ink  (i.a.  othar  than  blua  or  black)/ 
Encra  da  coulaur  (i.a.  autra  qua  blaua  ou  noira) 


I     I   Colourad  plataa  and/or  illuatrations/ 


Planchaa  at/ou  illustrationa  wi  coulaur 


Bound  with  othar  matarial/ 
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Tight  binding  may  causa  shadowa  or  distortion 
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Lareliura  sarrte  paut  causar  da  I'ombra  ou  da  la 
diatoraion  la  long  da  la  marga  intiriaura 

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mais,  lorsqua  cala  Atait  possibla,  caa  pagaa  n'ont 
pas  AtA  filmias. 


Additional  commants:/ 
Commantairas  supplAmantairas: 


Variout  pagings. 


L'Institut  a  microfilmi  la  maillaur  axamplaira 
qu'il  lui  a  it*  possibla  da  sa  procurer.  Las  details 
da  cat  axamplaira  qui  sont  paut-Atra  uniquas  du 
point  da  vua  bibliographiqua.  qui  pauvant  modifiar 
una  imaga  raproduita.  ou  qui  pauvant  axigar  una 
modification  dans  la  mithoda  normala  da  filmaga 
sont  indiquis  ci-daasous. 


r~1   Colourad  pagaa/ 


Pagaa  da  coulaur 

Pagaa  damagad/ 
Pagaa  andommagias 

Pagaa  rastorad  and/oi 

Pagas  rastaurias  at/ou  palliculias 

Pagaa  discoloured,  stained  or  foxat 
Pagas  dAcolories.  tacheties  ou  piqu6es 

Pages  detached/ 
Pagas  ditachies 

Showthrough/ 
Transparence 

Quality  of  prir 

Qualit*  inigale  de  i'impression 

Includes  supplementary  matarii 
Comprend  du  material  supplimantaira 

Only  edition  available/ 
Seule  Mition  disponible 


|~~|  Pagaa  damaged/ 

I — I  Pagas  restored  and/or  laminated/ 

r~^  Pagas  discoloured,  stained  or  foxed/ 

I     I  Pages  detached/ 

r~l  Showthrough/ 

I     I  Quality  of  print  varies/ 

r*n  Includes  supplementary  material/ 

I — I  Only  edition  available/ 


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Pages  wholly  or  partially  obscured  by  errata 
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Ce  document  est  filmi  au  taux  de  riduction  Indiqui  ci-dessous. 


10X 

14X 

18X 

22X 

28X 

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The  copy  fllmtd  hara  tias  b««n  rtproducMl  thanks 
to  tno  gonorotity  of: 

Dana  Portar  Arts  Library 
Univantty  of  Watarloo 


L'oxomplairo  film*  f ut  roproduit  grico  A  la 
g4n4roslt*  da: 

Dana  Portar  Arti  Library 
Univanity  of  Watarloo 


Tha  imagas  appearing  hara  ara  tha  bast  quality 
possible  considering  the  condition  and  legibility 
of  the  original  copy  and  in  keeping  with  the 
filming  contract  specifications. 


Original  copies  in  printed  paper  covers  ara  filmed 
beginning  with  the  front  cover  and  ending  on 
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sion, or  the  back  cover  when  appropriate.  All 
other  original  copies  are  filmed  beginning  on  the 
first  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  Impres- 
sion, and  ending  on  the  last  page  with  a  printed 
or  illustrated  impression. 


The  last  recorded  frame  on  each  microfiche 
shall  contain  the  symbol  -^  (meaning  "CON- 
TINUED"), or  tha  symbol  y  (meaning  "END"), 
whichever  applies. 


Les  images  suivantes  ont  AtA  raprodultes  avac  la 
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Un  dee  symboies  suhrants  apparaltra  sur  la 
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cas:  le  symbole  — ►  signlf is  "A  8UIVRE",  le 
symbols  ▼  signifle  "FIN". 


Maps,  plates,  charts,  etc.,  may  be  filmed  at 
different  reduction  ratios.  Those  too  large  to  be 
entirely  included  in  one  exposure  ara  filmed 
beginning  In  the  upper  left  hand  corner,  left  to 
right  and  top  to  bottom,  as  many  frames  as 
required.  The  following  diagrams  illustrate  the 
method: 


Les  cartes,  planches,  tableaux,  etc.,  peuvent  fttre 
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lllustrant  la  mAthoda. 


1 

2 

3 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

HISTORY    OF    THE    REIGN 


OF 


FERDINAND  AND  ISABELLA. 


*    * 


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k 


HISTORY  OF  THE  REIGN 


OF 


FERDINAND  AND  ISABELLA 


THE    CATHOLIC. 


By   WILLIAM    H.   PRESCOTT, 

COKKBSPONDING  MRMBBR  OP  THR  INSTITUTB  OF  PMANCK,  OP  THM  ROVAIi 
ACADEMY  OF  HISTOKV  AT  MAOKID,  BTC. 


Conjugio  tali  t 


Q.ix  sur^ere  regna 

Virgil.  jSneid.  iv.  4;. 

Crevere  vires,  famaqiie  et  iinperi 
Purrecta  inajestas  ab  Euro 
Solis  ad  Occiduunt  cubile. 

Hor»t,  Cartti.  iv.  ts. 


NEW  AND   REVISED   EDITION. 

WITH    THE   author's    LATEST   CORRECTIONS   AND 

ADDITIONS. 


EDITED  BY  JOHN   FOSTER   KIRK. 


IN  THREE   VOLUMES.— VOL.  IL 


PHILADELPHIA: 

J.    B.   LIPPINCOTT    &    CO. 

1875. 


ftaperty  of  the  Ubraiy 
""'versity  Of  Water't 


filtered,  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  In  the  year  1837,  by 

WILLIAM  H.  PRESCOTT, 

III  the  Clerk'f  Office  of  the  District  Court  for  the  District  of  Massachmetu. 


Re-entered,  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1865,  by 

SUSAN  PRESCOTT  and  WILLIAM  GARDINER  PRESCOIT, 

f  I)  the  Clerk's  Office  uf  the  District  Court  for  the  District  of  Massachusetts. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  187a,  by 

J.  B.  LIPPINCOTT  &   CO., 
In  the  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress  at  Washington. 


Lippincott's    Prbss, 
Philadklphia. 


'\5 


CONTENTS  OF  VOL.  II. 


PART   FIRST 

THE  PERIOD,  WHEN  THE  DIFFERENT  KINGDOMS  OF  SPAIN 
WERE  FIRST  UNITED  UNDER  ONE  MONARCHY,  AND  A  THOR- 
OUGH REFORM  WAS  INTRODUCED  INTO  THEIR  INTERNAL 
ADMINISTRATION;  OR  THE  PERIOD  EXHIBITING  MOST 
FULLY  THE  DOMESTIC  POLICY  OF  FERDINAND  AND  ISA- 
BELLA. 

(CONTINUBO.) 

CHAPTER  XII. 

rAGi 
INTERNAL    AFFAIRS    OP    THE    KINGDOM.  —  INQUISITION    IN 

ARAGON 3 

Isabella  enforces  the  Laws 3 

Chastisement  of  certain  Ecclesiastics 4 

Marriage  of  Catharine  of  Navarre         .....  5 

Liberation  of  Catalan  Serfs 5 

Inquisition  in  Aragon 6 

Remonstrances  of  Cortes 7 

Conspiracy  formed •        .        .  8 

Assassination  of  Arbues 9 

Cruel  Persecutions 9 

Inquisition  throughout  Ferdinand's  Dominions  ,        .        ,11 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

War  of  Granada. — Surrender  of  Velez  Malaga. — 

Siege  and  Conquest  of  Malaga la 

Position  of  Velez  Malaga la 

Army  before  Velez 13 

(iii) 


iv  CONTENTS. 

PACB 

Defeat  of  El  Zagal 14 

Narrow  Escape  of  Ferdinand 15 

Surrender  of  Velez 15 

Description  of  Malaga 16 

Sharp  Rencontre 19 

Malaga  invested  by  Sea  and  Land ao 

Brilliant  Spectacle 20 

Extensive  Preparations .2a 

The  Queen  visits  the  Camp 23 

Summons  of  the  Town 23 

Danger  of  the  Marquis  of  Cadiz 24 

Civil  Feuds  of  the  Moors 24 

Attempt  to  assassinate  the  Sovereigns 26 

Distress  and  Resolution  of  the  Besieged 27 

Enthusiasm  of  the  Christians 28 

Discipline  of  the  Army 28 

General  Sally 29 

Generosity  of  a  Moorish  Knight 30 

Outworks  carried 31 

Grievous  Famine 32 

Proposals  for  Surrender 3a 

Haughty  Demeanor  of  Ferdinand 33 

Malaga  surrenders  at  Discretion 34 

•    Purification  of  the  City 35 

Entrance  of  the  Sovereigns 36 

Release  of  Christian  Captives 36 

Lament  of  the  Malagans 38 

Sentence  passed  on  them 39 

Wary  Device  of  Ferdinand 39 

Cruel  Policy  of  the  Victors 41 

■  Measures  for  repeopling  Malaga 4a 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

War  of  Granada.— Conquest  of  Baza.— Submission  of 

El  Zagal 44 

The  Sovereigns  visit  Aragon 44 

Inroads  into  Granada 45 

<     Border  War 46 


CONTENTS.  V 

FAGB 

Embassy  from  Maximilian .  47 

Preparations  for  the  Siege  of  Baza 49 

The  King  takes  Command  of  the  Army        .        .        •        •  49 

Position  and  Strength  of  Baza  . 5^ 

Assault  on  the  Garden 5^ 

Despondency  of  the  Spanish  Chiefs 54 

Dispelled  by  Isabella 55 

Gardens  cleared  of  their  Timber 5^ 

City  closely  invested 57 

Mission  from  the  Sultan  of  Egypt 58 

Houses  erected  for  the  Army 60 

Its  strict  Discipline 60 

Heavy  Tempest 61 

Isabella's  Energy        .        .        .        '. 62 

Her  patriotic  Sacrifices 63 

Resolution  of  the  Besieged 64 

Isabella  visits  the  Camp 64 

Suspension  of  Arms 65 

Baza  surrenders 66 

Conditions 67 

Occupation  of  the  City 67 

Treaty  of  Surrender  with  El  Zagal 68 

Painful  March  of  the  Spanish  Army 69 

Interview  between  Ferdinand  and  El  Zagal       .        .        .        .70 

Occupation  of  El  Zagal's  Domain 71 

Equivalent  assigned  to  him 71 

Difficulties  of  this  Campaign 73 

Isabella's  Popularity  and  Influence    .        .        .        •        •        •73 

Notice  of  Peter  Martyr 74 

t 

CHAPTER  XV. 


War  of  Granada. — Siege  and  Surrender  of  the  City 

OF  Granada  . 78 

The  Infanta  Isabella 78 

Public  Festivities 79 

Granada  summoned  in  vain       .        .        .        .      '^,        .        ,80 

Knighthood  of  Don  Juan 81 

Ferdinand's  Policy 8a 


vi  CONTENTS. 

FAr.F 

Isabella  deposes  the  Judges  of  Chancery         .        «       .        •  83 

Ferdinand  musters  his  Forces 84 

Encamps  in  the  Vega       .        .        .        .        •        •        .        •84 

Position  of  Granada 85 

Moslem  and  Christian  Chivalry ,86 

The  Queen  surveys  the  City •  87 

Skirmish  with  the  Enemy 88 

Conflagration  of  the  Christian  Cam;) 89 

Erection  of  Santa  Fe 90 

Negotiations  for  Surrender 93 

Capitulation  of  Granada 92 

Commotions  in  Granada 94 

Preparations  for  occupying  the  City         .        «...  94 

The  Cross  raised  on  the  Alhambra 0 

Fate  of  Abdallah 98 

Results  of  the  War  of  Granada loi 

Its  Moral  Influence .        •        .  loa 

Its  Military  Influence 103 

Destiny  of  the  Moors 104 

Death  and  Character  of  the  Marquis  of  Cadiz    •        .        •  105 

Notice  of  Bernaldez,  Curate  of  Los  Palacios  ....  107 

Irving's  Chronicle  of  Granada     ......  X08 


CHAPTER  XVI. 


Application  of  Christopher  Columbus  at 

Court        

Maritime  Enterprise  of  the  Portuguese       . 

Early  Spanish  Discoveries        .... 

Early  History  of  Columbus 

Belief  of  Land  in  the  West     . 

Columbus  applies  to  Portugal 

To  the  Court  of  Castile   . 

Referred  to  a  Council  .        . 

His  Application  rejected  . 

He  prepares  to  leave  Spain  . 

Interposition  in  his  Behalf 

Columbus  at  Santa  Fe 

Negotiations  again  broken  off  . 


FHE  Spanish 


109 

IIO 

III 
114 
116 
118 
119 
120 
121 
123 
124 

125 

ia6 


CONTENTS,  vii 

PAGI 

The  Queen's  favorable  Disposition 137 

Final  Arrangement  with  Colunobus xaS 

He  sails  on  his  First  Voyage Z39 

Indifference  to  his  Enterprise 131 

Acknowledgments  due  to  Isabella 133 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

Expulsion  of  the  Jews  from  Spain 134 

Excitement  against  the  Jews 134 

Fomented  by  the  Clergy 135 

Violent  Conduct  of  Torquemada 136 

Edict  of  Expulsion 137 

Its  severe  Operation 138  • 

Constancy  of  the  Jews 141 

Routes  of  the  Emigrants 143 

Their  Sufferings  in  Africa 143 

In  other  Countries       .        .        .        .        .        .        .        .  144 

Whole  Number  of  Exiles 146 

Disastrous  Results 147 

True  Motives  of  the  Edict       ........  148 

Contemporary  Judgments 150 

Mistaken  Piety  of  the  Queen 151 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

Attempted  Assassination  of  Ferdinand.— Return  and 

Second  Voyage  of  Columbus 153 

The  Sovereigns  visit  Aragon 153 

Attempt  on  Ferdinand's  Life 154 

General  Consternation  ,        .        .        .        .        .        •  155 

Loyalty  of  the  People 156 

Slow  Recovery  of  the  King 156 

Punishment  of  the  Assassin 157 

Return  of  Columbus    .        .        .        ...        .        .        .  158 

Discovery  of  the  West  Indies  . 159 

Joyous  Reception  of  Columbus 161 

His  Progress  to  Barcelona        .        .        .        .        «        ,        .  163 


viii  CONTENTS. 

PAGB 

Interview  with  the  Sovereigns 163 

Sensations  caused  by  the  Discovery 164 

Board  for  Indian  Affairs 166 

Regulations  of  Trade 167 

Preparations  for  a  Second  Voyage 169 

Conversion  of  the  Natives 169 

New  Powers  granted  to  Columbus 170 

Application  to  Rome 170 

Famous  Bulls  of  Alexander  VI 172 

Jealousy  of  the  Court  of  Lisbon      .        .        .        .        ,        .  173 

Wary  Diplomacy 174 

Second  Voyage  of  Columbus  .        .        .        .        .        .        .  176 

Mission  to  Portugal 177 

Disgust  of  John  II 178 

Treaty  of  Tordesillas 179 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

Castilian  Literature.— Cultivation  of  thf  Court.— 

Classical  Learning.— Science i8x 

Ferdinand's  Education  neglected 182 

Instruction  of  Isabella .        .        .  182 

Her  Collection  of  Books 184 

Tuition  of  the  Infantas 185 

Of  Prince  John 186 

The  Queen's  Care  for  the  Education  of  her  Nobles         .        .  188 

Labors  of  Martyr 189 

Of  Lucio  Marineo 190 

Scholarship  of  the  Nobles 192 

Accomplished  Women 193 

Classical  Learning 195 

Lebrija 196 

Arias  Barbosa 197 

Merits  of  the  Spanish  Scholars 199 

Universities 200 

Sacred  Studies 201 

Other  Sciences 202 

Printing  introduced 203 


CONTENTS  iJt 

FAGI 

The  Queen  encourages  it 303 

Its  rapid  Diffusion        . SK>5 

Actual  Progress  of  Science      ....•••   ao7 


CHAPTER  XX. 


Castilian  Literature.— Romances  of  Chivalry.— I. yr 


ICAL  Poetry.— The  Drama     . 
This  Reign  an  Epoch  in  Polite  Letters 
Romances  of  Chivalry      .        .        .        . 
Their  pernicious  Effects 
Ballads  or  Romances         .        .        .        . 
Early  Cultivation  in  Spain    . 
Resemblance  to  the  English     . 
Moorish  Minstrelsy      .... 

Its  Date  and  Origin 

Its  high  Repute 

Numerous  Editions  of  the  Ballad     . 

Lyric  Poetry 

Cancionero  General  .        .        .        . 

Its  Literary  Value        .... 
Low  State  of  Lyric  Poetry 
Coplas  of  Manrique     .... 
Rise  of  the  Spanish  Drama 
Tragicomedy  of  Celestina    . 

Criticism  on  it 

It  opened  the  Way  to  Dramatic  Writing 
Numerous  Editions  of  it  . 
Juan  de  la  Encina        .... 
His  Dramatic  Eclogues    .        ,        , 
Torres  de  Naharro        .... 

His  Comedies 

Similar  in  Spirit  with  the  later  Dramas 

Not  acted  in  Spain 

Low  Condition  of  the  Stage 

Tragic  Drama ...... 

Oliva's  Classic  Imitations  .       . 

A* 


308 

ao8 

209 

213 
213 
213 

2X5 
216 
219 
221 
223 
S24 
224 
225 
227 
228 
229 
233 

933 
234 
835 
336 
936 
238 
240 
341 
243 
243 
244 

345 


CONTENTS. 


PACI 


Not  f>opular 346 

National  Spirit  of  the  Literature  of  this  Epoch    .        .        .        047 
Moratln's  Dramatic  Criticism 348 


PART    SECOND. 


THE  PERIOD  WHEN,  THE  INTERIOR  ORGANIZATION  OF 
THE  MONARCHY  HAVING  BEEN  COMPLETED,  THE  SPANISH 
NATION  ENTERED  ON  ITS  SCHEMES  OF  DISCOVERY  AND 
conquest;  OR  the  period  illustrating  MORE  PAR- 
TICULARLY THE  FOREIGN  POLICY  OF  FERDINAND  AND 
ISABELLA. 

CHAPTER  I. 

Italian  Wars.— General  View  of  Europe.— Invasion  of 
Italy  BY  Charles  VIII.  OF  France      .       .       .       .253 

Foreign  Politics  directed  by  Ferdinand        ....  253 

Europe  at  the  Close  of  the  Fifteenth  Century  ....  354 

Character  of  the  reigning  Sovereigns 255 

Improved  Political  and  Moral  Condition         ....  256 

More  intimate  Relations  between  States      ....  257 

Foreign  Relations  conducted  by  the  Sovereign        .        .        .  358 

Italy  the  School  of  Politics 258 

Her  most  powerful  States 259 

Character  of  Italian  Politics 263 

Internal  Prosperity 364 

Intrigues  of  Sforza 264 

Charles  VIII.  of  France .        .  265 

His  Pretensions  to  Naples 366 

Negotiations  respecting  Roussillon 368 

Charles's  Counsellors  in  the  Pay  of  Ferdinand    .        .        .  369 

Treaty  of  Barcelona 270 

Its  Importance  to  Spain 371 

Alarm  at  the  French  Invasion,  in  Italy    .....  373 

In  Europe,  especially  Spain 272 

Preparations  of  Charles 273 


CONTENTS.  xi 

PACK 

An  Envoy  sent  to  the  French  Court 375 

Announces  Ferdinand's  Views 375 

Charles's  Dissatisfaction 376 

The  French  cross  the  Alps 277 

Italian  Tactics 278 

The  Swiss  Infantry 280 

French  Artillery 281 

Sforza  jealous  of  the  French 382 

The  Pope  confers  the  Title  of  Catholic        ....  383 

Naval  Preparations  in  Spain sSa. 

Second  Mission  to  Charles  VIII. 285 

Bold  Conduct  of  the  Envoys 286 

The  King  of  Naples  flies  to  Sicily       .        .        .        .        .  287 

The  French  enter  Naples 288 

General  Hostility  to  them 289 

League  of  Venice 290 

Zurita's  Life  and  Writings 393 

CHAPTER  II. 


Italian  Wars. — Retreat  of  Charles  VIII.— Campaigns 
of  gonsalvo  de  cordova. — final  expulsion  of  the 

French 296 

Conduct  of  Charles 296 

Plunders  the  Works  of  Art 297 

Retreat  of  the  French 098 

Gonsalvo  de  Cordova 30Z 

His  Early  Life 30Z 

His  brilliant  Qualities 30Z 

Raised  to  the  Italian  Command 304 

Arrives  in  Italy 305 

Lands  in  Calabria        .        ,        ,        .        .        .        .        .        306 

Marches  on  Seminara 307 

Gonsalvo's  Prudence    . 308 

Rattle  of  Seminara 309 

Defeat  of  the  Neapolitans 3x0 

Gonsalvo  retreats  to  Reggi  > 311 

Ferdinand  recovers  his  Capital 313 

Gonsalvo  in  Calabr:a       ....  ...   314 


Xii  CONTENTS. 

PARB 

His  Successes 315 

Decline  of  the  French      ....,,..  316 

Besieged  in  Atclla 318 

Gonsalvo  surprises  Laino .  319 

Arrives  before  Atclla 320 

Receives  the  Title  of  Great  Captain 321 

Beats  a  Detachment  of  Swiss 322 

Capitulation  of  Montpensier 324 

Miserable  State  of  the  French 325 

Death  of  Ferdinand  of  Naples 326 

Accession  of  Frederick  II 326 

Total  Expulsion  of  the  French 327 

Remarks  on  Guicciardini  and  Giovio 327 

Sismondi 328 


CHAPTER  III. 

Italian  Wars.— Gonsalvo  succors  the  Pope.— Treaty 
WITH    France.  —  Organization    of    the    Spanish 

MlLIlIA 330 

War  on  the  Side  of  Roussillon 330 

The  Pope  asks  the  Aid  of  Gonsalvo 331 

Storming  and  Capture  of  Ostia   .        .        .        .        .        .  332 

Gonsalvo  enters  Rome 332 

His  Reception  by  the  Pope 333 

Returns  to  Spain 334 

Peace  with  France 335 

Ferdinand's  Views  respecting  Naples 336 

His  Fame  acquired  by  the  War 337 

Influence  of  the  War  on  Spain 339 

Organization  of  the  Militia  .        .        .        ...        .        .  340 


CHAPTER  IV. 


Alliances  of  the  Royal  Family. 
John  and  Princess  Isabella  . 

Royal  Family  of  Castile 

Joanna  Beltraneja    .... 


-Death  of  Prince 


343 

343 
344 


CONTENTS.  xiil 

FAni 

Marriage  of  the  Princess  Isabella 345 

Death  of  her  Husband .        .  346 

Alliances  with  the  House  of  Austria    .        .        .        .        .  348 

And  that  of  England 348 

Joanna  embarks 350 

The  Queen's  Anxiety 35X 

Margaret  of  Austria     . 33a 

Returns  in  the  Fleet 353 

Marriage  of  John  and  Margaret 354 

Second  Marriage  of  Princess  Isabella 356 

Sudden  Illness  of  Prince  John 356 

His  Death 357 

His  amiable  Character 359 

The  King  and  Queen  of  Portugal  visit  Spain  ....  360 

Objections  to  their  Recognition 361 

Isabella  displeased 363 

Her  Daughter's  Death 364 

Its  Effects  on  Isabella 364 

Prince  Miguel's  Recognition 366 


CHAPTER  V. 

Death  of  Cardinal  Mendoza.— Rise  of  Ximenes.— Ec- 
clesiastical Reform 368 

Death  of  Mendoza 368 

His  Early  Life 369 

And  Character 370 

His  Amours 370 

The  Queen  his  Executor 372 

Birth  of  Ximenes 373 

He  visits  Rome 374 

His  Return  and  Imprisonment 375 

Established  at  Siguenza 376 

Enters  the  Franciscan  Order 377 

His  severe  Penance 377 

His  ascetic  Life 378 

He  is  made  Guardian  of  Salzeda 379 

Introduced  to  the  Queen 380 

Made  her  Confessor 380 


Xiv  CONTENTS. 

Elected  Provincial 381 

Corruption  of  the  Monasteries 38a 

Attempts  at  Reform 383 

See  of  Toledo  vacant  ........  384 

Offered  to  Ximenes 386 

He  reluctantly  accepts  .......  387 

Characteristic  Anecdotes  of  Ximenes 388 

His  austere  Life 389 

Reform  in  his  Diocese 390 

Example  of  his  Severity 391 

Reform  of  the  Monastic  Orders 391 

Great  Excitement  caused  by  it 39a 

Visit  of  the  Franciscan  General 393 

Insults  the  Queen 394 

The  Pope's  Interference 394 

Consents  to  the  Reform 395 

Its  Operation  and  Effects 395 

Alvaro  Gomez,  and  Biographers  of  Ximenes       .        ,        .  398 


CHAPTER  VI. 

Ximenes  in  Granada.— Persecution,  Insurrection,  and 

Conversion  of  the  Moors 400 

Introductory  Remarks '      .  400 

Ximenes,  his  Constancy  of  Purpose 40a 

Tranquil  State  of  Granada 403 

Tendilla 403 

Talavera      ...........  404 

Archbishop  of  Granada 404 

His  mild  Policy 405 

The  Clergy  dissatisfied  with  it 407 

Temperate  Sway  of  the  Sovereigns 407 

Ximenes  in  Granada        ........  409 

His  violent  Measures 411 

Destroys  Arabic  Books    .        .        .        .        •        .        .        .  412 

Mischievous  Effects 414 

Revolt  of  the  Albaycin 415 

Ximenes  besieged  in  his  Palace    .        .        .        .        .        .  416 

The  Insurgents  appeased  by  Talavera 417 


CONTENTS.  XV 

PAca 

Displeasure  of  the  Sovereigns •       •419 

Ximenes  hastens  to  Court 420 

Conversion  of  Granada 431 

Applauded  by  the  Spaniards        ...•••        t^a 


CHAPTER  VII. 

Rising  in  the  Alpujarras.— Death  of  Alonso  de  Agui- 

LAR.— Edict  against  the  Moors 435 

The  Alpujarras 425 

Rising  of  the  Moors 426 

Huejar  sacked 437 

Ferdinand  marches  into  the  Mountains 428 

Carries  Lanjaron 429 

Punishment  of  the  Rebels .        .  429 

Revolt  of  the  Sierra  Vermeja 431 

Rendezvous  at  Ronda 433 

Expedition  into  the  Sierra 433 

The  Moors  retreat  up  tlie  Mountains 434 

Return  on  the  Spaniards 435 

Alonso  de  Aguilar 436 

His  Gallantry  and  Death 437 

His  noble  Character         .        .        .        .        .        .        .        .  438 

Bloody  Rout  of  the  Spaniards 439 

Dismay  of  the  Nation 440 

The  Rebels  submit  to  Ferdinand 441 

Banishment  or  Conversion 441 

Commemorative  Ballads 442 

Melancholy  Reminiscences 444 

Edict  against  the  Moors  of  Castile 446 

Christianity  and  Mahometanism 449 

Causes  of  Intolerance 450 

Aggravated  in  the  Fifteenth  Century 450 

Effects  of  the  Inquisition 451 

Defects  of  the  Treaty  of  Granada 45a 

Evasion  of  it  by  the  Christians 453 

Priestly  Casuistry 454 

Last  Notice  of  the  Moors  in  the  Present  Reign    .        ,        ,  456 


xvi 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

PAOI 

CuLUMBUs.— Prosecution  of  Discovery.— His  Treatment 

BY  THE  Court 457 

Progress  of  Discovery 457 

Misconduct  of  the  Culonists 459 

Complaints  against  Columbus      ••••••  460 

Mis  Second  Return 461 

The  Queen's  Confidence  in  him  unshaken  ....  46a 

Honors  conferred  on  him 463 

His  Third  Voyage 465 

Discovers  Terra  Jurma 465 

Mutiny  in  the  Colony 466 

Luud  Complaints  against  Columbus 467 

Bigoted  Views  in  regard  to  the  Heathen      ....  468 

More  liberal  Sentiments  of  Isabella 470 

She  sends  back  the  Indian  Slaves         .        .        .        .        .  471 

Authority  to  Uubadilla 471 

Outrage  on  Columbus  ........  <7a 

Deep  Kegret  of  the  Sovereigns 4/4 

Reception  of  Columbus 474 

Vindication  of  the  Sovereigns 475 

Commission  to  Ovando 477 

Groundless  Imputations  on  the  Government    ....  478 

I'he  Admiral's  Despondency        .        .        .        ...        .  481 

His  Fourth  and  Last  Voyage 483 

Remarkable  Fate  of  his  Enemies 483 


CHAPTER  IX. 


Spanish  Colonial  Policy 485 

Careful  Provision  for  the  Colonies        .....  485 

Liberal  Grants 486 

License  for  Private  Voyages 487 

I'heir  Success 488 

Indian  Department 490 

Casa  de  Contratacion .491 

I ni)X>rtant  Papd  Concessions 491 


CONTENTS. 


XVlJ 


PACi« 

•  493 
495 

•  49* 
49l 

.    500 
503 

.   504 
506 

.    507 
507 
Mufioz     ...........   508 


Spirit  of  the  Colonial  I  .fgislatlon 

Thu  Queen's  Zeal  for  cuu  erting  the  Natives 

Unhappily  defeated 

Immediate  Profits  from  the  Discoveries 
Origin  of  the  Venereal  Disease 
Moral  Consequences  of  the  Discoveries 
I'hcir  Geographical  Extent       .        .        . 
Historians  of  the  New  World      .        .        . 

Peter  Martyr 

Herrera 


PARTFIRST. 

(CONTINUED.) 
1406-1492. 

The  period  when  the  differfnt  kingdoms  of  Spain  were 

FIRST  united  under  ONE  MONARCHY,  AND  A  THOROUGH 
REFORM  WAS  INTRODUCED  INTO  THEIR  INTERNAL  ADMINIS- 
TRATION; OR  THE  PERIOD  EXHIBITING  MOST  FULLY  THB 
DOMESTIC  POLICY  OF  FERDINAND  AND  ISABELLA. 


Vol.  II.— I 


CHAPTER  XII. 

INTERNAL  AFFAIRS  OF  THE   KINGDOM. — INQUISITION   IN 

ARAGON. 


1483-1487. 

Isabella  enforces  the  Laws. — Punishment  of  Ecclesiastics. — Inquisition 
in  Aragon. — Remonstrances  of  the  Cortes. — Conspiracy. — Assas- 
sination of  the  Inquisitor  Arbues.  —  Cruel  Persecutions.  —  Inqui- 
sition throughout  Ferdinand's  Dominions. 

In  such  intervals  of  leisure  as  occurred  amid  their 
military  operations,  Ferdinand  and  Isabella  were  dili- 
gently occupied  with  the  interior  government  of  the 
kingdom,  and  especially  with  the  rigid  administration 
of  justice,  the  most  difficult  of  all  duties  in  an  im- 
perfectly civilized  state  of  society.  The  queen  found 
especial  demand  for  this  in  the  northern  provinces, 
whose  rude  inhabitants  were  little  used  to  subordina- 
tion. She  compelled  the  great  nobles  to  lay  aside  their 
arms  and  refer  their  disputes  to  legal  arbitration.  She 
caused  a  number  of  the  fortresses,  which  were  still  gar- 
risoned by  the  baronial  banditti,  to  be  razed  to  the 
ground ;  and  she  enforced  the  utmost  severity  of  the 
law  against  such  inferior  criminals  as  violated  the  public 
peace.' 

Even  ecclesiastical  immunities,  which  proved  so  ef- 

'  Lebrija,  Rerum  Gestarum  Decades,  iii.  lib,  1,  cap.  10. — Pulgar, 
Reyes  Cat6Iicos,  part.  3,  cap.  27,  39,  67,  et  alibi. — L.  Marineo,  Cosas 
tnemorablee,  fol.  175. — Zurita,  Anales,  torn.  iv.  fol.  348. 

(3) 


4  INTERNAL  AFFAIRS. 

factual  a  protection  in  most  countries  at  this  period, 
were  not  permitted  to  screen  the  offender.  A  remark- 
able instance  of  this  occurred  at  the  city  of  Truxillo, 
in  i486.  An  inhabitant  of  that  place  had  been  com- 
mitted to  prison  for  some  offence  by  order  of  the  civil 
magistrate.  Certain  priests,  relations  of  the  offender, 
alleged  that  his  religious  profession  exempted  him  from 
all  but  ecclesiastical  jurisdiction  ;  and,  as  the  authori- 
ties refused  to  deliver  him  up,  they  inflamed  the  popu- 
lace to  such  a  degree,  by  their  representations  of  the 
insult  offered  to  the  church,  that  they  rose  in  a  body, 
and,  forcing  the  prison,  set  at  liberty  not  only  the 
malefactor  in  question,  but  all  those  confined  there. 
The  queen  no  sooner  heard  of  this  outrage  on  the  royal 
authority  than  she  sent  a  detachment  of  her  guard  to 
Truxillo,  which  secured  the  persons  of  the  principal 
rioters,  some  of  whom  were  capitally  punished,  while 
the  ecclesiastics  who  had  stirred  up  the  sedition  were 
banished  the  realm.  Isabella,  while  by  her  example 
she  inculcated  the  deepest  reverence  for  the  sacred 
profession,  uniformly  resisted  every  attempt  from  that 
quarter  to  encroach  on  the  royal  prerogative.  The 
tendency  of  her  administration  was  decidedly,  as  there 
will  be  occasion  more  particularly  to  notice,  to  abridge 
the  authority  which  the  clergy  had  exercised  in  civil 
matters  under  preceding  reigns.' 


»  Pulgar,  Reyes  Catdlicos,  cap.  66. — A  pertinent  example  of  this 
occurred,  December,  1485,  at  Alcald  de  Henares,  where  the  court  was 
detained  during  the  illness  of  the  queen,  who  there  gave  birth  to  her 
youngest  child,  Dofia  Catalina,  afterwards  so  celebrated  in  English 
history  as  Catharine  of  Aragon.  A  collision  took  place  in  this  city 
between  the  royal  judges  and  those  of  the  archbishop  of  Toledo,  t'' 
whose  diocese  it  belonged.    The  latter  stoutly  maintained  the  prcf-'n- 


INQUISITION  IN  A  RAG  ON. 


Nothing  of  interest  occurred  in  the  foreign  relations 
of  the  kingdom  during  the  period  embraced  by  the 
preceding  chapter,  except  perhaps  the  marriage  of 
Catharine,  the  young  queen  of  Navarre,  with  Jean 
d'Albret,  a  French  nobleman,  whose  extensive  heredi- 
tary domains,  in  the  southwest  corner  of  France,  lay 
adjacent  to  her  kingdom.  (1484.)  This  connection 
was  extremely  distasteful  to  the  Spanish  sovereigns,  and 
indeed  to  many  of  the  Navarrese,  who  were  desirous  of 
the  alliance  with  Castile.  This  was  ultimately  defeated 
by  the  queen-mother,  an  artful  woman,  who,  being  of 
the  blood  royal  of  France,  was  naturally  disposed  to  a 
union  with  that  kingdom.  Ferdinand  did  not  neglect 
to  maintain  such  an  understanding  with  the  malcon- 
tents of  Navarre  as  should  enable  him  to  counteract 
any  undue  advantage  which  the  French  monarch  might 
derive  from  the  possession  of  this  key,  as  it  were,  to 
the  Castilian  territory.^ 

In  Aragon,  two  circumstances  took  place  in  the 
period  under  review,  deserving  historical  notice.  The 
first  relates  to  an  order  of  the  Catalan  peasantry,  de- 
nominated vassals  de  remenza.  These  persons  were 
subjected  to  a  feudal  bondage,  which  had  its  origin  in 
very  remote  ages,  but  which  had  become  in  no  degree 
mitigated,  while  the  peasantry  of  every  other  part  of 

sions  of  the  church.  The  queen  with  equal  pertinacity  asserted  the 
supremacy  of  the  royal  jurisdiction  over  every  other  in  the  kingdom, 
jscular  or  ecclesiastical.  Th6  affair  was  ultimately  referred  to  the 
arbitration  of  certain  learned  men,  named  conjointly  by  the  adverse 
parties.  It  was  not  then  determined,  however,  and  Pul,  •  has  neg- 
lected to  acquaint  us  with  the  award.  Reyes  Cat61icos,  cap.  53.— 
Carbajal,  Anales,  MS,,  ano  1485. 
3  Aleson,  Anales  de  Navarra,  torn.  v.  lib.  35,  cap.  3. 


INTERNAL  AFFAIRS. 


Europe  had  been  gradually  rising  to  the  rank  of  free- 
men. The  grievous  nature  of  the  impositions  had  led 
to  repeated  rebellions  in  preceding  reigns.  At  length, 
Ferdinand,  after  many  fruitless  attempts  at  a  mediation 
between  these  unfortunate  people  and  their  arrogant 
masters,  prevailed  on  the  latter,  rather  by  force  of  au- 
thority than  argument,  to  relinquish  the  extraordinary 
seignorial  rights  which  they  had  hitherto  enjoyed>  in 
consideration  of  a  stipulated  annual  payment  from  their 
vassals.*  (i486.) 

The  other  circumstance  worthy  of  record,  but  not  in 
like  manner  creditable  to  the  character  of  the  sover- 
eign, is  the  introduction  of  the  modern  Inquisition 
into  Aragon.  1  he  ancient  tribunal  had  existed  there, 
as  has  been  stated  in  a  previous  chapter,  since  the 
middle  of  the  thirteenth  century,  but  seems  to  have 
lost  all  its  venom  in  the  atmosphere  of  that  free  coun- 
try ;  scarcely  assuming  a  jurisdiction  beyond  that  of  an 
ordinary  ecclesiastical  court.  No  sooner,  however,  was 
the  institution  organized  on  its  new  basis  in  Castile, 
than  Ferdinand  resolved  on  its  introduction,  in  a  similar 
form,  in  his  own  dominions. 

Measures  were  accordingly  taken  to  that  effect  at  a 
meeting  of  his  privy  council  convened  by  the  king  at 
Tara^ona,  during  the  session  of  the  cortes  in  that  place, 
in  April,  1484;  and  a  royal  order  was  issued  requiring 
all  the  constituted  authorities  throughout  the  kingdom 
to  support  the  new  tribunal  in  the  exercise  of  its  func- 
tions. A  Dominican  monk,  Fray  Gaspard  Juglar,  and 
Pedro  Arbues  de  Epila,  a  canon  of  the  metropolitan 

4  Zurita,  Anales,  torn.  iv.  cap.  52,  67. — Mariana,  Hist,  de  Espafia, 
lib.  25,  cap.  8. 


INQUISITION  IN  ARAGON. 


church,  were  appointed  by  the  general,  Torquemada, 
inquisitors  over  the  diocese  of  Saragossa ;  and  in  the 
month  of  September  following  the  chief  justiciary  and 
the  other  great  officers  of  the  realm  took  the  prescribed 
oaths.  > 

The  new  institution,  opposed  to  the  ideas  of  inde- 
pendence common  to  all  the  Aragonese,  was  particularly 
offensive  to  the  higher  orders,  many  of  whose  members, 
including  persons  filling  the  most  considerable  official 
stations,  were  of  Jewish  descent,  and  of  course  precisely 
the  class  exposed  to  the  scrutiny  of  the  Inquisition. 
Without  difficulty,  therefore,  the  cortes  was  persuaded 
in  the  following  year  to  send  a  deputation  to  the  court 
of  Rome,  and  another  to  Ferdinand,  representing  the 
repugnance  of  the  new  tribunal  to  the  liberties  of  the 
nation,  as  well  as  to  their  settled  opinions  and  habits, 
and  praying  that  its  operation  might  be  suspended  for 
the  present,  so  far  at  least  as  concerned  the  confiscation 
of  property,  which  it  rightly  regarded  as  the  moving 
power  of  the  whole  terrible  machinery.* 

5  Llorente,  Hist,  de  I'lnquisition,  torn.  i.  chap.  6,  art.  a. — Zurita, 
Anales,  lib.  20,  cap.  65. — At  this  cortes,  convened  at  Tara9ona,  Ferdi- 
nand and  Isabella  experienced  an  instance  of  the  haughty  spirit  of 
their  Catalan  subjects,  who  refused  to  attend,  alleging  it  to  be  a  vio- 
lation of  their  liberties  to  be  summoned  to  a  place  without  the  limits  of 
their  principality.  The  Valencians  also  protested,  that  their  attend- 
ance should  not  operate  as  a  precedent  to  their  prejudice.  It  was 
usual  to  convene  a  central  or  general  cortes  at  Fraga,  or  Monzon, 
or  some  town  which  the  Catalans,  who  were  peculiarly  jealous  of 
their  privileges,  claimed  to  be  within  their  territory.  It  was  still  more 
usual  to  hold  separate  cortes  of  the  three  kingdoms  simultaneously 
In  such  contiguous  places  in  each  as  would  permit  the  royal  presence 
in  all  during  their  session.  See  Blancas,  Modo  de  proceder  en  Cortes 
de  Aragon  (Zaragoza,  1641),  cap.  4. 

^  By  one  of  the  articles  in  the  Privilegium  Generale,  the  Magna 


8 


INTERNAL  AFFAIRS. 


Both  the  pope  and  the  king,  as  may  be  imagined, 
turned  a  deaf  ear  to  these  remonstrances.  In  the 
mean  while  the  Inquisition  commenced  operations, 
and  autos  da  fe  were  celebrated  at  Saragossa,  with  all 
their  usual  horrors,  in  the  months  of  May  and  June,  in 
1485.  The  discontented  Aragonese,  despairing  of  re- 
dress in  any  regular  way,  resolved  to  intimidate  their 
oppressors  by  some  appalling  act  of  violence.  They 
formed  a  conspiracy  for  the  assassination  of  Arbues,  the 
most  odious  of  the  inquisitors  established  over  the  diocese 
of  Saragossa.  The  conspiracy,  set  on  foot  by  some  of 
the  principal  nobility,  was  entered  into  by  ihost  of  t!v-> 
new  Christians,  or  persons  of  Jewish  extraction,  in  the 
district.  The  sum  of  ten  thousand  reals  was  subscribed 
to  defray  the  necessary  expenses  for  the  execution  of 
their  project.  This  was  not  easy,  however,  since  Arbues, 
conscious  of  the  popular  odium  that  he  had  incurred, 
protected  his  person  by  wearing  under  his  monastic 
robes  a  suit  of  mail,  complete  even  to  tive  helmet  be- 
neath his  hood.  With  similar  vigilance  he  defended, 
also,  every  avenue  to  his  sleeping-apartment.' 

At  length,  however,  the  conspirators  found  an  op- 
portunity of  surprising  him  while  at  his  devotions. 
Arbues  was  on  his  knees  before  the  great  altar  of  the 


Charta  of  Aragon,  it  is  declared,  "  Que  turment :  ni  ihquisicion ;  no 
sian  en  Aragon  como  sian  contra  Fuero  el  qual  dize  que  alguna  pes- 
quisa  no  hauemos :  et  contra  el  privilegio  general,  el  qual  vieda  que 
inquisicion  so  sia  feyta,"  (Fueros  y  Observancias,  fol.  11.)  The  tenor 
of  this  clause  (although  the  term  inquisicion  must  not  be  confounded 
with  the  name  of  the  modern  institution)  was  sufficiently  precise,  one 
might  have  thought,  to  secure  the  Aragonese  from  the  fangs  of  this 
terrible  tribunal. 
7  Llorente,  Hist,  de  I'lnquisition,  chap.  6,  art.  3,  3. 


INQUISITION  IN  ARAGON. 


cathedral,  near  midnight,  when  his  enemies,  who  had 
entered  the  church  in  two  separate  bodies,  suddenly 
surrounded  him,  and  one  of  them  wounded  him  in  the 
arm  with  a  dagger,  while  another  dealt  him  a  fatal 
blow  in  the  buck  of  his  neck.  The  priests,  who  were 
preparing  to  celebrate  matins  in  the  choir  of  the  church, 
hastened  to  the  spot,  but  not  before  the  assassins  had 
effected  their  escape.  They  transported  the  bleeding 
body  of  the  inquisitor  to  his  apartment,  where  he  sur- 
vived only  two  days,  blessing  the  Lord  that  he  had 
been  permitted  to  seal  so  good  a  cause  with  his  blood. 
The  whole  scene  will  readily  remind  the  English  reader 
of  the  assassination  of  Thomas  A  Becket." 

The  event  did  not  correspond  with  the  expectations 
of  the  conspirators.  Sectarian  jealousy  proved  stronger 
than  hatred  of  the  Inquisition.  The  populace,  ignorant 
of  the  extent  or  ultimate  object  of  the  conspiracy,  were 
filled  with  vague  apprehensions  of  an  insurrection  of  the 
new  Christians,  who  had  so  often  been  the  objects  of 
outrage ;  and  they  could  only  be  appeased  by  the  arch- 
bishop of  Saragossa  riding  through  the  streets  and 
proclaiming  that  no  time  should  be  lost  in  detecting 
and  punishing  the  assassins. 

This  promise  was  abundantly  fulfilled ;  and  wide  was 
the  ruin  occasioned  by  the  indefatigable  zeal  with 
which  the  bloodhounds  of  the  tribunal  followed  up  the 
scent.  In  the  course  of  this  persecution,  two  hundred 
individuals  perished  at  the  stake,  and  a  still  greater 
number  in  the  dungeons  of  the  Inquisition;  and  there 
was  scarcely  a  noble  family  in  Aragon  but  witnessed 

8  Llorente,  ubi  supra. — Paramo,  Ue  Origine  Inquisitionis,  pp.  182, 
183. — Ferreras,  Hist.  d'Espagnc,  toin.  viii.  pp.  37,  38. 

A* 


lO 


INTERNAL  AFFAIRS. 


one  or  more  of  its  members  condemned  to  humiliating 
penance  in  the  autos  da  fe.  The  immediate  perpe- 
trators of  the  murder  were  all  hanged,  after  suffering 
the  amputation  of  their  right  hands.  One,  who  had 
appeared  as  evidence  against  the  rest,  under  assurance 
of  pardon,  had  his  sentence  so  far  commuted  that  his 
hand  was  not  cut  off  till  after  he  had  been  hanged.  It 
was  thus  that  the  Holy  Office  interpreted  its  promises 
of  grace. » 

Arbues  received  all  the  honors  of  a  martyr.  His 
ashes  were  interred  on  the  spot  where  he  had  been 
assassinated."  A  superb  mausoleum  was  erected  over 
them,  and  beneath  his  effigy  a  bas-relief  was  sculptured 
representing  his  tragical  death,  with  an  inscription  con- 
taining a  suitable  denunciation  of  the  race  of  Israel. 
And  at  length,  when  the  lapse  of  nearly  two  centuries 
had  supplied  the  requisite  amount  of  miracles,  the 
Spanish  Inquisition  had  the  glory  of  adding  a  new 
saint  to  the  calendar,  by  the  canonization  of  the  martyr 
under  Pope  Alexander  the  Seventh,  in  1664." 

9  Llorente,  Hist,  de  I'lnquisition,  torn.  i.  chap.  6,  art.  5. — Blancas, 
Aragonensium  Rerum  Commentarii  (Caesaraugustae,  1588),  p.  266, — 
Among  those  who,  after  a  tedious  imprisonment,  were  condemned  to  do 
penance  in  an  auto  da  fe,  was  a  nephew  of  king  Ferdinand,  Don  James 
of  Navarre.  Mariana,  willing  to  point  the  tale  with  a  suitable  moral, 
informs  us  that,  although  none  of  the  conspirators  were  ever  brought 
to  trial,  they  all  perished  miserably  within  a  year,  in  different  ways,  by 
the  judgment  of  God.  (Hist,  de  Espaiia,  torn.  ii.  p.  368.)  Unfortunately 
for  the  effect  of  this  moral,  Llorente,  who  consulted  the  original  pro- 
cesses, must  be  received  as  the  better  authority  of  the  two. 

w  According  to  Paramo,  when  the  corpse  of  the  inquisitor  was  brought 
to  the  place  where  he  had  been  assassinated,  the  blood,  which  had  been 
coagulated  on  the  pavement,  smoked  up  and  boiled  with  most  miracu- 
lous fervor!    De  Origine  Inquisitionis,  p.  382. 

"  Paramo,  De  Origine   Inquisitionis,  p.  183. — Llorente,  Hist,  de 


INQUISITION  IN  AHAGON. 


II 


The  failure  of  the  attempt  to  shake  off  the  tribunal 
served  only,  as  usual  in  such  cases,  to  establish  it  more 
firmly  than  before.  Efforts  at  resistance  were  subse- 
quently, but  ineffectually,  made  in  other  parts  of  Aragon, 
and  in  Valencia  and  Catalonia.  It  was  not  established 
in  the  latter  province  till  1487,  and  some  years  later  in 
Sicily,  Sardinia,  and  the  Balearic  Isles.  Thus  Ferdi- 
nand had  the  melancholy  satisfaction  of  riveting  the 
most  galling  yoke  ever  devised  by  fanaticism  round  the 
necks  of  a  people  who  till  that  period  had  enjoyed 
probably  the  greatest  degree  of  constitutional  freedom 
which  the  world  had  witnessed. 

rinquisition,  chap.  6,  art.  4. — France  and  Italy  also,  according  to 
Llorente,  could  each  boast  a  saint  inquisitor.  Their  renown,  how- 
ever, has  been  eclipsed  by  the  superior  splendors  of  their  great  master, 
St.  Dominic; 

— "  Fils  inconniu  d'un  si  glorieux  pirc" 


■■I    ! 


CHAPTER    XIII. 


'Ill 


WAR   OF   GRANADA. SURRENDER    OF  VELEZ    MALAGA.— 

SIEGE  AND   CONQUEST  OF  MALAGA. 

1487. 

Narrow  Escape  of  Ferdinand  before  Velez. — Malaga  invested  by  Sea 
and  Land. — Brilliant  Spectacle. — The  Queen  visits  the  Camp. — 
Attempt  to  assassinate  the  Sovereigns. — Distress  and  Resolution  of 
the  Besieged. — Enthusiasm  of  the  Christians. — Outworks  carried 
by  them. — Proposals  for  Surrender. — Haughty  Demeanor  of  Fer- 
dinand.— Malaga  surrenders  at  Discretion. — Cruel  Policy  of  the 
Victors. 

Before  commencing  operations  against  Malaga,  it 
was  thought  expedient  by  the  Spanish  council  of  war 
to  obtain  possession  of  Velez  Malaga,  situated  about 
five  leagues  distant  from  the  former.  This  strong  town 
stood  along  the  southern  extremity  of  a  range  of 
mountains  that  extend  to  Granada.  Its  position  af- 
forded an  easy  communication  with  that  capital,  and 
obvious  means  of  annoyance  to  an  enemy  interposed 
between  itself  and  the  adjacent  city  of  Malaga.  The 
reduction  of  this  place,  therefore,  became  the  first 
object  of  the  campaign. 

The  forces  assembled  at  Cordova,  consisting  of  the 
levies  of  the  Andalusian  cities  principally,  of  the  re- 
tainers of  the  great  nobility,  and  of  the  well-appointed 
chivalry  which  thronged  from  all  quarters  of  the  king- 
dom, amounted  on  this  occasion  to  twelve  thousand 


CONQ UES T  OF  MALA  GA . 


U 


horse  and  forty  thousand  foot ;  a  number  which  suffi- 
ciently attests  the  unslackened  ardor  of  the  nation  in 
the  prosecution  of  the  war.  On  the  7th  of  April,  1487, 
King  Ferdinand,  putting  himself  at  the  head  of  this 
formidable  host,  quitted  the  fair  city  of  Cordova  amid 
the  cheering  acclamations  of  its  inhabitants,  although 
these  were  somewhat  damped  by  the  ominous  occur- 
rence of  an  earthquake,  which  demolished  a  part  of  the 
royal  residence,  among  other  edifices,  during  the  pre- 
ceding night.  The  route,  after  traversing  the  Yeguas 
and  the  old  town  of  Antequera,  struck  into  a  wild,  hilly 
country  that  stretches  towards  Velez.  I'he  rivers  were 
so  much  swollen  by  excessive  rains,  and  the  passes  so 
rough  and  difficult,  that  the  army  in  part  of  its  march 
advanced  only  a  league  a  day ;  and  on  one  occasion, 
when  no  suitable  place  occurred  for  encamprinent  for 
the  space  of  five  leagues,  the  men  fainted  with  ex- 
haustion, and  the  beasts  dropped  down  dead  in  the 
harness.  At  length,  on  the  1 7th  of  April,  the  Spanish 
army  sat  down  before  Velez  Malaga,  where  in  a  few 
days  they  were  joined  by  the  lighter  pieces  of  their 
battering  ordnai.ce,  the  roads,  notwithstanding  the 
immense  labor  expended  on  them,  being  found  im- 
practicable for  the  heavier  guns.' 
The  Moors  were  aware  of  the  importance  of  Velez 

'  Vedmar,  Antigiiedad  y  Grandezas  de  la  Ciudad  de  Velez  (Granada, 
1652),  fol.  148. — Mariana,  Hist,  de  Espana,  torn.  ii.  lib.  25,  cap.  10. — 
Piilgar,  Reyes  Catolicos,  part.  iii.  cap.  70. — Carbajal,  Anales,  MS.,ano 
14S7. — Bleda,  Coronica,  lib.  5,  cap.  14. — In  the  general  summons  to 
Alava  for  the  campaign  of  this  year,  we  find  a  particular  call  on  the 
cavalleros  and  hidalgos,  with  the  assurance  of  pay  during  the  time  of 
service,  and  the  menace  of  forfeiting  their  privileges  as  exempts  from 
ta.\ation,  in  case  of  non-compliance.     Col.de  Cedulas,  torn,  iv,  no.  20. 


14 


IVA/l   OF  GRANADA. 


to  the  security  of  Malaga.  The  sensation  excited  in 
Granada  by  the  tidings  of  its  danger  was  so  strong, 
that  the  old  chief,  El  Zagal,  found  it  necessary  to  make 
an  effort  to  relieve  the  beleaguered  city,  notwithstand- 
ing the  critical  posture  in  which  his  absence  would 
leave  his  affairs  in  the  capital.  Dark  clouds  of  the 
enemy  were  seen  throughout  the  day  mustering  along 
the  heights,  which  by  night  were  illumined  with  a  hun- 
dred fires.  Ferdinand's  utmost  vigilance  was  required 
for  the  protection  of  his  camp  against  the  ambuscades 
and  nocturnal  sallies  of  his  wily  foe.  At  length,  how- 
ever. El  Zagal,  having  been  foiled  in  a  well-concerted 
attempt  to  surprise  the  Christian  quarters  by  night,  was 
driven  across  the  mountains  by  the  marquis  of  Cadiz, 
and  compelled  to  retreat  on  his  capital,  completely 
baffled  in  his  enterprise.  There  the  tidings  of  his 
disaster  had  preceded  him.  The  fickle  populace,  with 
whom  misfortune  passes  for  misconduct,  unmindful  of 
his  former  successes,  now  hastened  to  transfer  their 
allegiance  to  his  rival,  Abdallah,  and  closed  the  gates 
against  him;  and  the  unfortunate  chief  withdrew  to 
Guadix,  which,  with  Almeria,  Baza,  and  some  less 
considerable  places,  still  remained  faithful." 

Ferdinand  conducted  the  siege  all  the  while  with  his 
usual  vigor,  and  spared  no  exposure  of  his  person  to 
peril  or  fatigue.  On  one  occasion,  seeing  a  party  of 
Christians  retreating  in  disorder  before  a  squadron  of 
the  enemy,  who  had  surprised  them  while  fortifyi  ig 
an  eminence  near  the  city,  the  king,  who  was  at  dinner 

«  Cardonne,  Hist,  de  TAfrique  et  de  I'Espagne,  torn.  ili.  pp.  292-294. — 
Pulgar,  Reyes  Catolicos,  ubi  supra. — Vedmar,  Antigiiedad  de  Velez, 
fol.  151. 


cox  QUEST  OF  MALAGA. 


15 


riis 
to 
of 
of 

ner 

%■— 

:lez, 


in  his  tent,  rushed  out  with  no  other  defensive  armor 
than  his  cuirass,  and,  leaping  on  his  horse,  charged 
briskly  into  the  midst  of  the  enemy,  and  succeeded  in 
rallying  his  own  men.  In  the  midst  of  the  rencontre, 
however,  when  he  had  discharged  his  lance,  he  found 
himself  unable  to  extricate  his  sword  from  the  scabbard 
which  hung  from  the  saddle-bow.  At  this  moment  he 
was  assaulted  by  several  Moors,  and  must  have  been 
either  slain  or  taken,  but  for  the  timely  rescue  of  the 
marquis  of  Cadiz,  and  a  brave  cavalier,  Garcilasso  de 
la  Vega,  who,  galloping  up  to  the  spot  with  their  at- 
tendants, succeeded,  after  a  sharp  skirmish,  in  beating 
off  the  enemy.  Ferdinand's  nobles  remonstrated  with 
him  on  this  wanton  exposure  of  his  person,  repre- 
senting tliat  he  could  serve  them  more  effectually 
with  his  head  than  his  hand.  But  he  answered  that 
"he  could  not  stop  to  calculate  chances  when  his 
subjects  were  perilling  their  lives  for  his  sake;"  a 
reply,  says  Pulgar,  which  endeared  hi.n  to  the  whole 
army.  3 

At  length,  the  inhabitants  of  Velez,  seeing  the  ruin 
impending  from  the  bombardment  of  the  Christians, 
whose  rigorous  blockade  both  by  sea  and  land  excluded 
all  hopes  of  relief  from  without,  consented  to  capitu- 
late on  the  usual  conditions  of  security  to  their  persons, 
property,  and  religion.  The  capitulation  of  this  place 
(April  27th,  1487)  was  followed  by  that  of  more  than 

3  L.  Marineo,  Cosas  memorables,  fol.  175. — Vedmar,  Antiguedad 
de  Velez,  fol.  150, 151. — Marmol,  Rebelion  de  los  Moriscos,  lib.  i,  cap. 
14. — In  commemoration  of  this  event,  the  city  incorporated  into  its 
escutcheon  the  figure  of  a  king  on  horseback,  in  the  act  of  piercing  a 
Moor  with  his  javelin.     Vedmar,  Antiguedad  de  Velez,  fol.  12. 


f'    1 


i^ 


i      :« 


i6 


IVA/i   OF  GKANADA. 


twenty  places  of  inferior  note  lying  between  it  and 
Malaga,  so  that  the  approaches  to  this  latter  city  were 
now  left  open  to  the  victorious  Spaniards.* 

This  ancient  city,  which,  under  the  Spanish  Arabs 
in  the  twelfth  and  thirteenth  centuries,  formed  the 
capital  of  an  independent  principality,  was  second  only 
to  the  metropolis  itself,  in  the  kingdom  of  Granada. 
Its  fruitful  environs  furnished  abundant  articles  of  ex- 
port, while  its  commodious  port  on  the  Mediterranean 
opened  a  traffic  with  the  various  countries  washed  by 
that  inland  sea,  and  with  the  remoter  regions  of  India. 
Owing  to  these  advantages,  the  inhabitants  acquired 
unbounded  opulence,  which  showed  itself  in  the 
embellishments  of  their  city,  whose  light  forms  of 
architecture,  mingling  after  the  Eastern  fashion  with 
odoriferous  gardens  and  fountains  of  sparkling  water, 
presented  an  appearance  most  refreshing  to  the  senses 
in  this  sultry  climate.' 

The  city  was  encompassed  by  fortifications  of  great 
strength  and  in  perfect  repair.  It  was  commanded  by 
a  citadel,  connected  by  a  covered  way  with  a  second 
fortress,  impregnable  from  its  position,  denominated  Ge- 
balfaro,  which  stood  along  the  declivities  of  the  bold 
sierra  of  the  Axarquia,  whose  defiles  had  proved  so 
disastrous  to  the  Christians.    The  city  lay  between  two 

4  Bemaldez,  Reyes  Catolicos,  MS.,  cap.  52. — Marmol,  Rebelion  de 
los  Moiiscos,  lib.  i,  cap.  14. 

5  Conde  doubts  whether  the  name  of  Malaga  is  derived  from  the 
Greek  fia^nKr),  signifying  "  agreeable,"  or  the  Arabic  tnalka,  meaning 
"  royal."  Either  etymology  is  sufficiently  pertinent.  (See  El  Nubiense, 
Descripcion  de  Espana,  p.  186,  nota.)  For  notices  of  sovereigns  who 
swayed  the  sceptre  of  Malaga,  see  Casiri,  Bibliothcca  Escurialensis, 
toni.  ii.  pp.  41,  56,  99,  et  alibi. 


CONQUEST  OF  MALAGA. 


n 


spacious  suburbs,  the  one  on  the  land  side  being  also 
encircled  by  a  formidable  wall,  and  the  other  declining 
towards  the  sea,  showing  an  expanse  of  olive,  orange, 
and  pomegranate  gardens,  intermingled  with  the  rich 
vineyards  that  furnished  the  celebrated  staple  for  its 
export. 

Malaga  was  well  prepared  for  a  siege  by  supplies  of 
artillery  and  ammunition.  Its  ordinary  garrison  was 
reinforced  by  volunteers  from  the  neighboring  towns, 
and  by  a  corps  of  African  mercenaries,  Gomeres,  as  they 
were  called,  men  of  ferocious  temper,  but  of  tried  valor 
and  military  discipline.  The  command  of  this  im- 
portant post  had  been  intrusted  by  El  Zagal  to  a  noble 
Moor,  named  Hamet  Zeli,  whose  renown  in  the  pres- 
ent war  had  been  established  by  his  resolute  defence 
of  Ronda.* 

Ferdinand,  while  lying  before  Velez,  received  intel- 
ligence that  many  of  the  wealthy  burghers  of  Malaga 
were  inclined  to  capitulate  at  once,  rather  than  hazard 
the  demolition  of  their  city  by  an  obstinate  resistance. 
He  instructed  the  marquis  of  Cadiz,  therefore,  to  open 
a  negotiation  with  Hamet  Zeli,  authorizing  him  to 
make  the  most  liberal  offers  to  the  alcayde  himself, 
as  well  as  his  garrison,  and  the  principal  citizens  of 
the  place,  on  condition  of  imm.ediate  surrender.  The 
sturdy  chief,  however,  rejected  the  proposal  with  dis- 
dain, replying  that  he  had  been  commissioned  by  his 
master  to  defend  the  place  to  the  last  extremity,  and 
that  the  Christian  king  could  not  offer  a  bribe  large 

*  Conde,  Domlnacion  de  los  Arabes,  torn.  iii.  p.  237.  —  Pulgar, 
Reyes  Cat61icos,  cap,  74. — El  Nubiense,  Descripcion  de  Espafia,  p. 
X44,  nota. 

Vol.  1 1,-2 


Hi 


i 
I 


i8 


fVA/t   OF  GRANADA. 


enough  to  make  him  betray  his  trust.  Ferdinand, 
finding  little  prospect  of  operating  on  this  Spartan 
temper,  broke  up  his  camp  before  Velez  on  the  7th  of 
May,  and  advanced  with  his  whole  army  as  far  as 
Bezmillana,  a  place  on  the  sea-board  about  two  leagues 
distant  from  Malaga.' 

The  line  of  march  now  lay  through  a  valley  com- 
manded at  the  extremity  nearest  the  city  by  two  emi- 
nences ;  the  ont  on  the  sea-coast,  the  other  facing  the 
fortress  of  the  Gebalfaro  and  forming  part  of  the  wild 
sierra  which  overshadowed  Malaga  on  the  north.  The 
enemy  occupied  both  these  important  positions.  A 
corps  of  Galicians  was  sent  forward  to  dislodge  them 
from  the  eminence  towards  the  sea.  But  it  failed  in 
the  assault,  and,  notwithstanding  it  was  led  up  a  second 
time  by  the  commander  of  Leon  and  the  brave  Gar- 
cilasso  de  la  Vega,^  was  again  repulsed  by  the  intrepid 
foe. 

7  Bernaldez,  Reyes  Cat61icos,  MS.,  cap.  82. — Vedmar,  Antigiiedad 
de  Velez,  fol.  154. — Pulgar,  Reyes  Cat61icos,  cap.  74. 

B  This  cavalier,  who  took  a  conspicuous  part  in  both  the  miUtary  and 
civil  transactions  of  this  reign,  was  descended  from  one  of  the  most 
ancient  and  honorable  houses  in  Castile.  Hita  (Guerras  civiles  de 
Granada,  torn.  i.  p.  399),  with  more  effrontery  than  usual,  has  imputed 
to  him  a  chivalrous  rencontre  with  a  Saracen,  which  is  recorded  of 
an  ancestor,  in  the  ancient  Chronicle  of  Alonso  XI. : 

"  Garcilaso  de  la  Vega 
desde  alii  se  Iia  intitulado, 
porque  en  la  Vega  hiciera 
cainpo  con  aquel  pagano." 

Oviedo,  however,  with  good  reason,  distrusts  the  etymology  and  the 
story,  as  he  traces  both  the  cognomen  and  the  peculiar  device  of  the 
family  to  a  much  older  date  than  the  period  assigned  in  the  Chronicle. 
Quincuagenas,  MS.,  bat.  i,  quinc.  3,  dial.  43. 


CONQUEST  OF  MALAGA. 


>9 


A  similar  fate  attended  the  assault  on  the  sierra, 
which  was  conducted  by  the  troops  of  the  royal  house- 
hold. They  were  driven  back  on  the  vanguard,  which 
had  halted  in  '^'.c  valley  under  command  of  the  grand 
master  of  St.  James,  prepared  to  support  the  attack  on 
either  side.  Being  reinforced,  the  Spaniards  returned 
to  the  charge  with  the  most  determined  resolution. 
They  were  encountered  by  the  enemy  with  equal  spirit. 
The  latter,  throwing  away  their  lances,  precipitated 
themselves  on  the  ranks  of  the  assailants,  making  use 
only  of  their  daggers,  grappling  closely  man  to  man,  till 
both  rolled  promiscuously  together  down  the  steep  sides 
of  the  ravine.  No  mercy  was  asked  or  shown.  None 
thought  of  sparing  or  of  spoiling,  for  hatred,  says  the 
chronicler,  was  stronger  than  avarice.  The  main  body  of 
the  army,  in  the  mean  while,  pent  up  in  the  valley,  were 
compelled  to  witness  the  mortal  conflict,  and  listen  to 
the  exulting  cries  of  the  enemy,  which,  after  the  Moor- 
ish custom,  rose  high  and  shrill  above  the  din  of  battle, 
without  being  able  to  advance  a  step  in  support  of 
their  companions,  who  were  again  forced  to  give  way 
before  their  impetuous  adversaries  and  fall  back  on  the 
vanguard  under  the  grand  master  of  St.  James.  Here, 
however,  they  speedily  rallied,  and,  being  reinforced, 
advanced  to  the  charge  a  third  time,  with  such  inflexi- 
ble courage  as  bore  down  all  opposition,  and  compelled 
the  enemy,  exhausted,  or  rather  overpowered  by  supe- 
rior numbers,  to  abandon  his  position.  At  the  same 
time  the  rising  ground  on  the  sea-side  was  carried  by 
the  Spaniards  under  the  commander  of  Leon  and  Gar- 
cilasso  de  la  Vega,  who,  dividing  their  forces,  charged 
the  Moors  so  briskly  in  front  and  rear  that  they  were 


90 


WAH   OF  GRANADA. 


fi       ;"''i:ii 


compelled  to  retreat  on  the  neighboring  fortress  of 
Gebalfaro.' 

As  it  was  evening  before  these  advantages  were  ob- 
tained, the  army  did  not  defile  into  the  plains  around 
Malaga  before  the  following  morning,  when  dispositions 
were  made  for  its  encampment.  The  eminence  on  the 
sierra,  so  bravely  contested,  was  assigned,  as  the  post 
of  greatest  danger,  to  the  marquis  duke  of  Cadiz.  It 
was  protected  by  strong  works  lined  with  artillery,  and 
a  corps  of  two  thousand  five  hundred  horse  and  four- 
teen thousand  foot  was  placed  under  the  immediate 
command  of  that  nobleman.  A  line  of  defence  was 
constructed  along  the  declivity  from  this  redoubt  to  the 
sea-shore.  Similar  works,  consisting  of  a  deep  trench 
and  palisades,  or,  where  the  soil  was  too  rocky  to  admit 
of  thein,  of  an  embankment  or  mound  of  earth,  were 
formed  in  front  of  the  encampment,  which  embraced 
the  whole  circuit  of  the  city ;  and  the  biockade  was 
completed  by  a  fleet  of  armed  vessels,  galleys  and  cara- 
vels, which  rode  in  the  harbor  under  the  command  of 
the  Catalan  admiral,  Requesens,  and  effectually  cut  off 
all  communication  by  water." 

The  old  chronicler  Bernaldez  warms  at  the  aspect  of 
the  fair  city  of  Malaga,  thus  encompassed  by  Christian 
legions,  whose  deep  lines,  stretching  far  over  hill  and 
valley,  reached  quite  round  from  one  arm  of  the  sea 
to  the  other.  In  the  midst  of  this  brilliant  encamp- 
ment was  seen  the  royal  pavilion,  proudly  displaying 


9  Pulgar,  Reyes  Cat6Ucos,  cap.  75. — Salazar  de  Mendoza,  Cr6n.  del 
Gmn  Cardenal,  lib.  i,  cap.  64. 

'o  Bernaldez,  Reyes  Cat61icos,  MS.,  cap.  83. — Pulgar,  Reyes  Cat6« 
liuos,  cap.  76, — Carbiijal,  Analcs,  MS,,  afto  1487, 


CONQUEST  OF  MALAGA. 


21 


the  united  banners  of  Castile  and  Aragon,  and  forming 
so  conspicuous  a  mark  for  the  enemy's  artillery  that 
Ferdinand,  after  imminent  hazard,  was  at  length  com- 
pelled to  shift  his  quarters.  The  Christians  were  not 
slow  in  erecting  counter-batteries ;  but  the  work  was 
obliged  to  be  carried  on  at  night,  in  order  to  screen 
them  from  the  fire  of  the  besieged."  • 

The  first  operations  of  the  Spaniards  were  directed 
against  the  suburb,  on  the  land  side  of  the  city.  The 
attack  was  intrusted  to  the  count  of  Cifuentes,  the 
nobleman  who  had  been  made  prisoner  in  the  affair  of 
the  Axarquia  and  subsequently  ransomed.  The  Spanish 
ordnance  was  served  with  such  effect  that  a  practicable 
breach  was  soon  made  in  the  wall.  The  combatants 
now  poured  their  murderous  volleys  on  each  other 
through  the  opening,  and  at  length  met  on  the  ruins 
of  the  breach.  After  a  desperate  struggle,  the  Moors 
gave  way.  The  Christians  rushed  into  the  inclosure, 
at  the  same  time  effecting  a  lodgment  on  the  rampart, 
and,  although  a  part  of  it,  undermined  by  the  enemy, 
gave  way  with  a  terrible  crash,  they  still  kept  possession 
of  the  remainder,  and  at  length  drove  their  antagonists, 
who  sullenly  retreated  step  by  step,  within  the  fortifi- 
cations of  the  city.  The  lines  were  then  drawn  close 
around  the  place.  Every  avenue  of  communication 
was  strictly  guarded,  and  every  preparation  was  made 
for  reducing  the  town  by  regular  blockade." 


»'  Pulgar,  Reyes  Cat61icos,  ubi  supra. — Bernaldez,  Reyes  Catolicos, 
MS.,  ubi  supra. 

»»  Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  lib.  i,  epist.  63. — Pulgar,  Reyes  Cat6- 
licos,  cap.  76. — Bernaldez,  Reyes  Cat61icos,  cap.  83. — Oviedo,  Quin- 
cuagenas,  MS.,  bat.  i,  quinc.  i,  dial.  36. 


82 


tVA/!   OF  GKANADA. 


In  addition  to  the  cannon  brought  round  by  water 
from  Velez,  the  heavier  lombards,  which  from  the 
difficulty  of  transportation  had  been  left  during  the 
late  siege  at  Antequera,  were  now  conducted,  across 
roads  levelled  for  the  purpose,  to  the  camp.  Supplies 
of  marble  bullets  were  also  brought  from  the  ancient 
and  depopulated  city  of  Algezira,  where  they  had  lain 
ever  since  its  capture  in  the  preceding  century  by  Al- 
fonso the  Eleventh.  The  camp  was  filled  with  opera- 
tives, employed  in  the  manufacture  of  balls  and  powder, 
which  were  stored  in  subterranean  magazines,  and  in 
the  fabrication  of  those  various  kinds  of  battering  en- 
ginery which  continued  in  use  long  after  the  introduc- 
tion of  gunpowder.'' 

During  the  early  part  of  the  siege,  the  camp  expe- 
rienced some  temporary  inconvenience  from  the  occa- 
sional interruption  of  the  supplies  transported  by  water. 
Rumors  of  the  appearance  of  the  plague  in  some  of 
the  adjacent  villages  caused  additional  uneasiness ;  and 
deserters  who  passed  into  Malaga  reported  these  par- 
ticulars with  the  usual  exaggeration,  and  encouraged 
the  besieged  to  persevere,  by  the  assurance  that  Ferdi- 
nand could  'not  much  longer  keep  the  field,  and  that 
the  queen  had  actually  written  to  advise  his  breaking 
up  the  camp.  Under  these  circumstances,  Ferdinand 
saw  at  once  the  importance  of  the  queen's  presence  in 
order  to  dispel  the  delusion  of  the  enemy  and  to  give 
new  heart  to  his  soldiers.  He  accordingly  sent  a 
message  to  Cordova,  w^here  she  was  holding  her  court, 
requesting  her  appearance  in  the  camp. 


u  Pulgar,  Reyes  Cat6Ucos,  cap.  76. 


CONQUEST  OF  MALAGA. 


23 


Isabella  had  proposed  to  join  her  husband  before 
Velez,  on  receiving  tidings  of  El  Zagal's  march  from 
Granada,  and  had  actually  enforced  levies  of  all  per- 
sons capable  of  bearing  arms,  between  twenty  and 
seventy  years  of  age,  throughout  Andalusia,  but  subse- 
quently disbanded  them,  on  learning  the  discomfiture 
of  the  Moorish  army.  Without  hesitation,  she  now 
set  forward,  accompanied  by  the  cardinal  of  Spain  and 
other  dignitaries  of  the  church,  together  with  the  in- 
fanta Isabella,  and  a  courtly  train  of  ladies  and  cava- 
liers in  attendance  on  her  person.  She  was  received 
at  a  short  distance  from  the  camp  by  the  marquis  of 
Cadiz  and  the  grand  master  of  St.  James,  and  escorted 
to  her  quarters  amidst  the  enthusiastic  greetings  of  the 
soldiery.  Hope  now  brightened  every  countenance. 
A  grace  ^  eemed  to  be  shed  over  the  rugged  features  of 
war ;  and  the  young  gallants  thronged  from  all  quar- 
ters to  the  camp,  eager  to  win  the  guerdon  of  valor 
from  the  hands  of  those  from  whom  it  is  most  grateful 
to  receive  it."* 

Ferdinand,  who  had  hitherto  brought  into  action 
only  the  lighter  pieces  of  ordnance,  from  a  willingness 
to  spare  the  noble  edifices  of  the  city,  now  pointed  his 
heaviest  guns  against  its  walls.  Before  opening  his 
fire,  however,  he  again  summoned  the  place,  offering 
the  usual  liberal  terms  in  case  of  immediate  compli- 
ance, and  engaging  otherwise,  "with  the  blessing  of 
God,  to  make  them  all  slaves  "  !  But  the  heart  of  the 
alcayde  was  hardened  like  that  of  Pharaoh,  says  the 

'4  Salazar  de  Mendoza,  Cr6n.  del  Gran  Cardenal,  lib.  i,  cap.  64.— 
Zurita,  Anales,  torn.  iv.  cap.  70. — Bemaldez,  Reyes  Catolicos,  MS., 
cap.  83. 


•4 


^yA/i   OF  GRANADA. 


Andaliisian  chronicler,  and  the  people  were  swelled 
with  vain  hopes,  so  that  their  ears  were  closed  against 
the  proposal ;  orders  were  even  issued  to  punish  with 
death  any  attempt  at  a  parley.  On  the  contrary,  they 
made  answer  by  a  more  lively  cannonade  than  before, 
along  the  whole  line  of  ramparts  and  fortresses  which 
overhung  the  city.  Sallies  were  also  made  at  almost 
every  hour  of  the  day  and  night  on  every  assailable 
point  of  the  Christian  lines,  so  that  the  camp  was  kept 
in  perpetual  alarm.  In  one  of  the  nocturnal  sallies,  a 
body  of  two  thousand  men  from  the  castle  of  Gebal- 
faro  succeeded  in  surprising  the  quarters  of  the  marquis 
of  Cadiz,  who,  with  his  followers,  was  exhausted  by 
fatigue  and  watching  during  the  two  preceding  nights. 
The  Christians,  bewildered  with  the  sudden  tumult 
which  broke  their  slumber,  were  thrown  into  the  great- 
est confusion ;  and  the  marquis,  who  rushed  half  armed 
from  his  tent,  found  no  little  difficulty  in  bringing  them 
to  order,  and  beating  off  the  assailants,  after  receiving 
a  wound  in  the  arm  from  an  arrow  \  while  he  had  a 
still  narrower  escape  from  the  ball  of  an  arquebuse,  that 
penetrated  his  buckler  and  hit  him  below  the  cuirass, 
but  fortunately  so  much  spent  as  to  do  him  no  injury.'* 
The  Moors  were  not  unmindful  of  the  importance 
of  Malaga,  or  the  gallantry  with  which  it  was  defended. 
They  made  several  attempts  to  relieve  it,  the  failure  of 
which  was  owing  less  to  the  Christians  than  to  treach- 
ery and  their  ovn  miserable  feuds.  A  body  of  cav- 
alry, which  El  Zagal  despatched  from  Guadix  to  throw 

«s  Bleda,  Cor6nica,  lib.  5,  cap.  15. — Conde,  Dominacion  de  los 
Arabes,  torn.  iv.  pp.  237,  238. — Bernaldez,  Reyes  Cat61icos,  MS., 
cap.  83. — Pulgar,  Reyes  Catolicos,  cap.  79. 


1 


COXQUEST  OF  MA  LAC  A. 


•s 


succors  into  the  beleaguered  city,  was  encountered  and 
cut  to  pieces  by  a  superior  force  of  the  young  king  Ab- 
dallah,  who  consummated  his  baseness  by  sending  an 
emb;issy  to  the  Christian  camp,  charged  with  a  present 
of  Arabian  horses  sumptuously  caparisoned  to  Ferdinand, 
and  of  costly  silks  and  Oriental  perfumes  to  the  queen  ; 
at  the  same  time  complimenting  them  on  their  successes, 
and  soliciting  the  continuance  of  their  friendly  disposi- 
tions towards  himself.  Ferdinand  and  Isabella  requited 
this  act  of  humiliation  by  securing  to  Abdallah's  sub- 
jects the  right  of  cultivating  their  fields  in  quiet,  and 
of  trafficking  with  the  Spaniards  in  every  commodity 
save  military  stores.  At  this  paltry  price  did  the  das- 
tard prince  consent  to  stay  his  arm  at  the  only  moment 
when  it  could  be  used  effectually  for  his  country." 

More  serious  consequences  were  like  to  have  resulted 
from  an  attempt  made  by  another  party  of  Moors  from 
Guadix  to  penetrate  the  Christian  lines.  Part  of  them 
succeeded,  and  threw  themselves  into  the  besieged  city. 
The  remainder  were  cut  in  pieces.  There  was  one, 
however,  who,  making  no  show  of  resistance,  was  taken 
prisoner  without  harm  to  his  person.  Being  brought 
before  the  marquis  of  Cadiz,  he  informed  that  noble- 
man that  he  could  make  some  important  disclosures  to 
the  sovereigns.     He  was  accordingly  conducted  to  the 

««  Pulgar.  Reyes  Cat61icos,  ubi  supra. — During  the  siege,  ambassa- 
dors arrived  from  an  African  potentate,  the  king  of  Tremecen,  bearing  a 
magnificent  present  to  the  Castilian  sovereigns,  interceding  for  the  Mal- 
agans,  and  at  the  same  time  asking  protection  for  his  subjects  from 
the  Spanish  cruisers  in  the  Mediterranean.  The  sovereigns  graciously 
complied  with  the  latter  request,  and  complimented  the  African  mon- 
arch with  a  plate  of  gold,  on  which  the  royal  arms  were  curiously 
embossed,  says  Bcrnaldez,  Reyes  Catolicos,  cap.  84. 


II     '-Ji 


I 
it     :''i 


26 


fVA/i    OF  GRANADA. 


royal  tent  \  but)  as  Ferdinand  was  taking  his  siesta,  in 
the  sultry  hour  of  the  day,  the  queen,  moved  by  divine 
inspiration,  according  to  the  Castilian  historian,  de- 
ferred the  audience  till  her  husband  should  awake,  and 
commanded  the  prisoner  to  be  detained  in  the  adjoin- 
ing tent.  This  was  occupied  by  Doiia  Beatrix  de  Bo- 
badilla,  marchioness  of  Moya,  Isabella's  early  friend, 
who  happened  to  be  at  that  time  engaged  in  discourse 
with  a  Portuguese  nobleman,  Don  Alvaro,  son  of  the 
duke  of  Braganza.'' 

The  Moor  did  not  understand  the  Castilian  language, 
and,  deceived  by  the  rich  attire  and  courtly  bearing  of 
these  personages,  he  mistook  them  for  the  king  and 
queen.  While  in  the  act  of  refreshing  himself  with  a 
glass  of  water,  he  suddenly  drew  a  dagger  from  beneath 
the  broad  folds  of  his  albornoz,  or  Moorish  mantle, 
which  he  had  been  incautiously  suffered  to  retain,  and, 
darting  on  the  Portuguese  prince,  gave  him  a  deep 
wound  on  the  head,  and  then,  turning  like  lightning 
on  the  marchioness,  aimed  a  stroke  at  her,  which  fortu- 
nately glanced  without  injury,  the  point  of  the  weapon 
being  turned  by  the  heavy  embroidery  of  her  robes. 
Before  he  could  repeat  his  blow,  the  Moorish  Scaevola, 
with  a  fate  very  different  from  that  of  his  Roman  pro- 
totype, was  pierced  with  a  hundred  wounds  by  the 
attendants,  who  rushed  to  the  spot,  alarmed  by  the 

•7  This  nobleman,  Don  Alvaro  de  Portugal,  had  fled  his  native 
country,  and  sought  an  asylum  in  Castile  from  the  vindictive  enmity 
of  John  II.,  who  had  put  to  death  the  duke  of  Braganza,  his  elder 
brother.  He  was  kindly  received  by  Isabella,  to  whom  he  was  nearly 
related,  and  subsequently  pi  cferred  to  several  important  offices  of  state. 
His  son,  the  count  of  Gelves,  married  a  granddaughter  of  Christopher 
Columbus.     Oviedo,  Quincuagenas,  MS. 


CONQUEST  OF  MALAGA. 


27 


cries  of  the  marchioness,  and  his  mangled  remains  were 
soon  after  discharged  from  a  catapult  into  the  city;  a 
foolish  bravado,  which  the  besieged  requited  by  slaying 
a  Galician  gentleman  and  sending  his  corpse  astride 
upon  a  mule  through  the  gates  of  the  town  into  the 
Christian  camp.'* 

This  daring  attempt  on  the  lives  of  the  king  and 
queen  spread  general  consternation  throughout  the 
army.  Precautions  were  taken  for  the  future,  by  ordi- 
nances prohibiting  the  introduction  of  any  unknown 
person  armed,  or  any  Moor  whatever,  into  the  royal 
quarters;  and  the  body-guard  was  augmented  by  the 
addition  of  two  hundred  hidalgos  of  Castile  and  Aragon, 
who,  with  their  retainers,  were  to  keep'constant  watch 
over  the  persons  of  the  sovereigns. 

Meanwhile,  the  city  of  Malaga,  whose  natural  popu- 
lation was  greatly  swelled  by  the  influx  of  its  foreign 
aiixiliaries,  began  to  be  straitened  for  supplies,  while 
its  distress  was  aggravated  by  the  spectacle  of  abun- 
dance which  reigned  throughout  the  Spanish  camp. 
Still,  however,  the  people,  overawed  by  the  soldiery, 
did  not  break  out  into  murmurs,  nor  did  they  relax  in 
any  degree  the  pertinacity  of  their  resistance.  Their 
drooping  spirits  were  cheered  by  the  predictions  of  a 
fanatic,  who  promised  that  they  should  eat  the  grain 
which  they  saw  in  the  Christian  camp;  a  prediction 
which  came  to  be  verified,  like  most  others  that  are 
verified  at  all,  in  a  very  different  sense  from  that  in- 
tended or  understood. 

»8  Oviedo,  Quincuagenas,  MS.,  bat.  i,  quinc.  l,  dial.  23. — Peter 
Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  lib.  i,  epist.  63. — Bernaldez,  Reyes  Catolicos, 
MS.,  cap.  84. — Bleda,  Coronica,  lib.  5,  cap.  15. — L.  Marineo,  Cosas 
memorables,  fol.  175,  176. 


!      ii 


38 


PVA/l   OF  GHANADA. 


The  incessant  cannonade  kept  up  by  the  besieging 
army,  in  the  mean  time,  so  far  exhausted  their  ammu- 
nition that  they  were  constrained  to  seek  supplies  from 
the  most  distant  parts  of  the  kingdom,  and  from  foreign 
countries.  The  arrival  of  two  Flemish  transports  at 
this  juncture,  from  the  emperor  of  Germany,  whose 
interest  had  been  roused  in  the  crusade,  afforded  a 
seasonable  reinforcement  of  military  stores  and  muni- 
tions. 

The  obstinate  defence  of  Malaga  had  given  the  siege 
such  celebrity  that  volunteers,  eager  to  share  in  it, 
flocked  from  all  parts  of  the  Peninsula  to  the  royal 
standard.  Among  others,  the  duke  of  Medina  Sidonia, 
who  had  furnished  his  quota  of  troops  at  the  opening 
of  the  can.paign,  now  arrived  in  person  with  a  rein- 
forcement, together  with  a  hundred  galleys  freighted 
with  supplies,  and  a  loan  of  twenty  thousand  doblas 
of  gold  to  the  sovereigns  for  the  expenses  of  the  war. 
Such  was  the  deep  interest  in  it  excited  throughout 
the  nation,  and  the  alacrity  which  every  order  of  men 
exhibited  in  supporting  its  enormous  burdens.'' 

The  Castilian  army,  swelled  by  these  daily  augmenta- 
tions, varied  in  its  amount,  according  to  different  esti- 
mates, from  sixty  to  ninety  thousand  men.  Throughout 
this  immense  host,  the  most  perfect  discipline  was 
maintained.  Gaming  was  .restrained  by  ordinances 
interdicting  the  use  of  dice  and  cards,  of  which  the 
lower  orders  were  passionately  fond.  Blasphemy  was 
severely  punished.  Prostitutes,  the  common  pest  of  a 
camp,  were  excluded ;  and  so  entire  was  the  subordi- 

«9  Pulgar,  Reyes  Catolicos,  cap.  87-89. — Bernaldez,  Reyes  Cat6Iicos,- 
MS.,  cap.  84. 


CONQUEST  OF  MALAGA. 


«9 


nation,  that  not  a  knife  was  drawn,  and  scarcely  a 
brawl  occurred,  says  the  historian,  among  the  motley 
multitude.  Besides  the  higher  ecclesiastics  who  at- 
tended the  court,  the  camp  was  well  supplied  with  holy 
men,  priests,  friars,  and  the  chaplains  of  the  great 
nobility,  who  performed  the  exercises  of  religion  in 
their  respective  quarters  with  all  the  pomp  and  splendor 
of  the  Roman  Catholic  worship;  exalting  the  imagina- 
tions of  the  soldiers  into  the  high  devotional  feeling 
which  became  those  who  were  fighting  the  battles  of 
the  Cross.** 

Hitherto,  Ferdinand,  relying  on  the  blockade,  and 
yielding  to  the  queen's  desire  to  spare  the  lives  of  her 
S'./IJ"  Ts,  had  formed  no  regular  plan  of  assault  upon 
th^  V 1.  But,  as  the  season  rolled  on  without  the 
lei  .  '  aionstration  of  submission  on  the  part  of  the 
besieged,  he  resolved  to  storm  the  works,  which,  if  at- 
tended by  no  other  consequences,  might  at  least  serve 
to  distress  the  enemy  and  hasten  the  hour  of  surrender. 
Large  wooden  towers  on  rollers  were  accordingly  con- 
structed, and  provided  with  an  apparatus  of  drawbridges 
and  ladders,  which,  when  brought  near  to  the  ramparts, 
would  open  a  descent  into  the  city.  Galleries  were 
also  wrought,  some  for  the  purpose  of  penetrating  into 
the  place,  and  others  to  sap  the  foundations  of  the 
walls.  The  whole  of  these  operations  was  placed  under 
the  direction  of  Francisco  Ramirez,  the  celebrated 
engineer  of  Madrid. 

But  the  Moors  anticipated  the  completion  of  these 
formidable  preparations  by  a  brisk,  well-concerted  at- 

»  Bernaldez,  Reyes  Catolicos,  MS.,  cap.  87. — Pulgar,  Reyes  Catoli- 
cos,  cap.  71. 


'  II 


I 


30 


IVAH   OF  GRANADA. 


tack  on  all  points  of  the  Spanish  lines.  They  counter- 
mined the  assailants,  and,  encountering  them  in  the 
subterraneous  passages,  drove  them  back,  and  demolished 
the  frame-work  of  the  galleries.  At  the  same  time,  a 
little  squadron  of  armed  vessels,  which  had  been  riding 
in  safety  under  the  guns  of  the  city,  pushed  out  and 
engaged  the  Spanish  fleet.  Thus  the  battle  raged  with 
fire  and  sword,  above  and  under  ground,  along  the 
ramparts,  the  ocean,  and  the  land,  at  the  same  time. 
Even  Pulgar  cannot  withhold  his  tribute  of  admiration 
to  this  unconquerable  spirit  in  an  enemy  wasted  by  all 
the  extremities  of  famine  and  fatigue.  **  Who  does  not 
marvel,"  he  says,  "at  the  bold  heart  of  these  infidels 
in  battle,  their  prompt  obedience  to  their  chiefs,  their 
dexterity  in  the  wiles  of  war,  their  patience  under  priva- 
tion, and  undaunted  perseverance  in  their  purposes?"** 
A  circumstance  occurred  in  a  sortie  from  the  city,  in- 
dicating a  trait  of  character  worth  recording.  A  noble 
Moor,  named  Abrahen  Zenete,  fell  in  with  a  number 
of  Spanish  children  who  had  wandered  from  their  quar- 
ters. Without  injuring  them,  he  touched  them  gently 
with  the  handle  of  his  lance,  saying,  "Get  ye  gone, 
varlets,  to  your  mothers."  On  being  rebuked  by  his 
comrades,  who  inquired  why  he  had  let  them  escape  so 
easily,  he  replied,  "Because  I  saw  no  beard  upon  their 
chins."  "An  example  of  magnanimity,"  says  the  Cu- 
rate of  Los  Palacios,  "  truly  wonderful  in  a  heathen, 
and  which  might  have  reflected  credit  on  a  Christian 
hidalgo."" 

»  Conde,  Dominacion  de  los  Arabes,  torn.  iii.  pp.  237,  238, — Pulgar, 
Reyes  Cat61icos,  cap.  80. — Caro  de  Torres,  Ordenes  miiitares,  fol.  83, 

83- 
»  Pulgar,  Reyes  Catolicos,  cap.  91. — Bemaldez,  Reyes  Cat61icos, 


CONQUEST  OF  MALAGA. 


3» 


But  no  virtue  or  valor  could  avail  the  unfortunate 
Malagans  against  the  overwhelming  force  of  their  ene- 
mies, who,  driving  them  back  from  every  point,  com- 
pelled them,  after  a  desperate  struggle  of  six  hours,  to 
shelter  themselves  within  the  defences  of  the  town. 
The  Christians  followed  up  their  success.  A  mine  was 
sprung  near  a  tower  connected  by  a  bridge  of  four 
arches  with  the  main  works  of  the  place.  The  Moors, 
scattered  and  intimidated  by  the  explosion,  retreated 
across  the  bridge;  and  the  Spaniards,  carrying  the 
tower,  whose  guns  completely  enfiladed  it,  obtained 
possession  of  this  important  pass  into  the  beleaguered 
city.  For  these  and  other  signal  services  during  the 
siege,  Francisco  Ramirez,  the  master  of  the  ordnance, 
received  the  honors  of  knighthood  from  the  hand  of 
King  Ferdinand. "^ 

MS.,  cap.  84. — The  honest  exclamation  of  the  Curate  brings  to  mind 
the  similar  encomium  of  the  old  Moorish  ballad : 

**  Caballeros  Granadinos, 
Aunque  Moros,  hijosdalgo." 

Hita,  Guerras  de  Granada,  torn.  i.  p.  357. 

=3  There  is  no  well-authenticated  instance  of  the  employment  of 
gunpowder  in  mining  in  European  warfare,  so  far  as  I  am  aware,  of 
an  earlier  date  than  this.  Tiraboschi,  indeed,  refers,  on  the  authority  of 
another  writer,  to  a  work  in  the  library  of  the  Academy  of  Siena,  com- 
posed by  one  Francesco  Giorgio,  architect  of  the  duke  of  Urbino,  about 
1480,  in  which  that  person  claims  the  merit  of  the  invention.  (Lette- 
ratura  Italiana,  tom.  vi.  p.  370.)  The  whole  statement  is  obviously  too 
loose  to  warrant  any  such  conclusion.  The  Italian  historians  notice 
the  use  of  gunpowder  mines  at  the  siege  of  the  little  town  of  Sereza- 
nello  in  Tuscany,  by  the  Genoese,  in  1487,  precisely  contemporaneous 
with  the  siege  of  Malaga.  (Machiavelli,  Istorie  Fiorentine,  lib.  8. — 
Guicciardini,  Istoria  d'ltalia  (Milano,  1803),  tom.  iii. lib.  6.)  Thissin- 
gular  coincidence,  in  nations  having  then  but  little  intercourse,  would 
seem  to  infer  some  common  origin  of  greater  antiquity.     However  this 


3« 


tVA/i   OF  GRAMADA. 


Ik 


The  citizens  of  Malaga,  dismayed  at  beholding  the 
enemy  established  in  their  defences,  and  fainting  under 
exhaustion  from  a  siege  which  had  already  lasted  more 
than  three  months,  now  began  to  murmur  at  the  obsti- 
nacy of  the  garrison,  and  to  demand  a  capitulation. 
Their  magazines  of  grain  were  emptied,  and  for  some 
weeks  they  had  been  compelled  to  devour  the  flesh  of 
horses,  dogs,  cats,  and  even  the  boiled  hides  of  these 
animals,  or,  in  default  of  other  nutriment,  vine-leaves 
dressed  with  oil,  and  leaves  of  the  palm-tree,  pounded 
fine,  and  baked  into  a  sort  of  cake.  In  consequence 
of  this  loathsome  and  unwholesome  diet,  diseases  were 
engendered.  Multitudes  were  seen  dying  about  the 
streets.  Many  deserted  to  the  Spanish  camp,  eager  to 
barter  their  liberty  for  bread ;  and  the  city  exhibited 
all  the  extremes  of  squalid  and  disgusting  wretchedness, 
bred  by  pestilence  and  famine  among  an  overcrowded 
population.  The  sufferings  of  the  citizens  softened  the 
stern  heart  of  the  alcayde,  Hamet  Zeli,  who  at  length 
yielded  to  their  importunities,  and,  withdrawing  his 
forces  into  the  Gebalfaro,  consented  that  the  Malagans 
should  make  the  best  terms  they  could  with  their  con- 
queror. 

A  deputation  of  the  principal  inhabitants,  with  an 
eminent  merchant  named  Ali  Dordux  at  their  head, 
was  then  despatched  to  the  Christian  quarters,  with  the 

may  be,  the  writers  of  both  nations  are  agreed  in  ascribing  the  first 
successful  use  of  such  mines  on  any  extended  scale  to  the  celebrated 
Spanish  engineer,  Pedro  Navarro,  when  serving  under  Gonsalvo  de 
Cordova,  in  his  Italian  campaigns  at  the  beginning  of  the  sixteenth 
century.  Guicciardini,  ubi  supra. — Paolo  Giovio,  De  Vita  Magni 
Gonsalvi  (Vitae  lUustrium  Virorum,  Basiliae,  1578),  lib.  2. — Aleson, 
Anales  de  Navarra,  torn.  v.  lib.  35,  cap.  la. 


CONQUEST  OF  MALAGA. 


33 


oifer  of  the  city  to  capitulate,  on  the  same  liberal  con- 
ditions which  had  been  uniformly  granted  by  the  Span- 
iards. The  king  refused  to  admit  the  embassy  into  his 
presence,  and  haughtily  answered,  through  the  com- 
mander of  Leon,  that  "these  terms  had  been  twice 
offered  to  the  people  of  Malaga,  and  rejected ;  that  it 
was  too  late  for  them  to  stipulate  condi  i<  ...,  and 
nothing  now  remained  but  to  abide  by  those  which  he, 
as  their  conqueror,  should  vouchsafe  to  them.""* 

Ferdinand's  answer  spread  general  consternation 
throughout  Malaga.  The  inhabitants  saw  too  plainly 
that  nothing  was  to  be  hoped  from  an  appeal  to  senti- 
ments of  humanity.  After  a  tumultuous  debate,  the 
deputies  were  despatched  a  second  time  to  the  Chris- 
tian camp,  charged  with  propositions  in  which  con- 
cession was  mingled  with  menace.  They  represented 
that  the  severe  response  of  King  Ferdinand  to  the 
citizens  had  rendered  them  desperate:  that  they 
were  willing  to  resign  to  him  their  fortifications, 
their  city, — in  short,  their  property  of  every  descrip- 
tion,— on  his  assurance  of  their  personal  security  and 
freedom;  if  he  refused  this,  they  would  take  their 
Christian  captives,  amounting  to  five  or  six  hundred, 
from  the  dungeons  in  which  they  lay,  and  hang  them 
like  dogs  over  the  battlements ;  and  then,  placing  their 
old  men,  women,  and  children  in  the  fortress,  they 
would  set  fire  to  the  town,  and  cut  a  way  for  themselves 
through  their  enemies,  or  fall  in  the  attempt.     "So," 


»4  Cardonne,  Hist,  de  I'Afrique  et  de  I'Espagne,  torn.  iii.  p.  296. — L. 
Marineo,  Cosas  memorables,  fol.  175. — Rades  y  Andrada,  Las  tres 
Ordenes,  fol.  54. — Pulgar,  Reyes  Catolicos,  cap.  92. — Bernaldez,  Reyes 
CatolicoR,  MS.,  cap.  85. 

Vol.  II.— 3  B* 


i 


34 


n'AH   OF  GKAA'ADA. 


they  continued,  "if  you  gain  a  victory,  it  will  be  such 
a  one  as  shall  make  the  name  of  Malaga  ring  throug'  out 
the  world,  and  to  ages  yet  unborn  !"  '^"enlinand,  un- 
moved by  these  menaces,  coolly  replied  that  he  saw  no 
occasion  to  change  his  former  determination,  but  they 
might  rest  assured,  if  tiiey  harmed  a  single  hair  of  a 
Christian,  he  would  put  every  soul  in  the  place,  man, 
woman,  and  child,  to  the  sword. 

The  anxious  people,  who  thronged  forth  to  meet  the 
embassy  on  its  return  to  the  city,  were  overwhelmed 
with  the  deepest  gloom  at  its  ominous  tidings.  Their 
fate  was  now  sealed.  Every  avenue  to  hope  seemed 
closed  by  the  stern  response  of  the  victor.  Yet  hope 
will  still  linger;  and,  although  there  were  some  frantic 
enough  to  urge  the  execution  of  their  desperate  men- 
aces, the  greater  number  of  the  inhabitants,  and  among 
them  those  most  considerable  for  wealth  and  influence, 
preferred  the  chance  of  Ferdinand's  clemency  to  certain, 
irre^^rievable  ruin. 

For  the  last  time,  therefore,  the  deputies  issued  from 
the  gates  of  the  city,  charged  with  an  epistle  to  the 
sovereigns  from  their  unfortunate  countrymen,  in  which, 
after  deprecating  their  anger,  and  lamenting  their  own 
blind  obstinacy,  they  reminded  their  highnesses  of  the 
liberal  terms  which  their  ancestors  had  granted  to 
Cordova,  Antequera,  and  other  cities,  after  a  defence 
as  pertinacious  as  their  own.  They  expatiated  on 
the  fame  which  the  sovereigns  had  established  by  the 
geneious  policy  of  their  past  conquests,  and,  appeal- 
ing tj  their  magnanimity,  concluded  with  submitting 
themselves,  their  families,  and  their  fortunes  to  their 
disposxl.     Twenty  of  the  principal  citizens  were  then 


CONQUEST  OF  MALAGA. 


35 


delivered  up  as  hostages  for  the  peaceable  demeanor  of 
the  city  until  its  occupation  by  the  Spaniards.  "  Thus,'* 
says  the  Curate  of  J.os  Palacios,  "did  the  Almighty 
harden  the  hearts  o  »iese  heathen,  like  to  those  of  the 
Egyptians,  in  order  that  they  might  receive  the  full 
wages  of  the  manifold  oppressions  which  they  had 
wrought  on  his  people,  from  the  days  of  King  Roderic 
to  the  present  time  I""' 

On  the  appointed  day,  the  commander  of  Leon  rode 
through  the  gates  of  Malaga,  at  the  head  of  his  well- 
appointed  chivalry,  and  took  possession  of  the  alcazaba, 
or  lower  citadel.  The  troops  were  then  posted  at  their 
respective  stations  along  the  fortifications,  and  the  ban- 
ners of  Christian  Spain  triumphantly  unfurled  from  the 
towers  of  the  city,  where  the  crescent  had  been  dis- 
played for  an  uninterrupted  period  of  nearly  eight 
centuries. 

The  first  act  was  to  purify  the  town  from  the  numer- 
ous dead  bodies,  and  other  offensive  matter,  which  had 
accumulated  during  this  long  siege,  and  lay  festering 
in  the  streets,  poisoning  the  atmosphere.  The  princi- 
pal mosque  was  next  consecrated  with  due  solemnity  to 
the  service  of  Santa  Maria  de  It.  Encarnacion.    Crosses 


»S  Pulgar,  Reyes  Cat61icos,  cap.  93. — Cardonne,  Hist,  de  I'Afrique 
etdel'Espagne,  torn.  iii.  p.  296. — The  Arabic  historians  state  that  Malaga 
was  betrayed  by  Ali  Dordux,  who  admitted  the  Spaniards  into  the 
castle  while  the  citizens  were  debating  on  Ferdinand's  terms.  (See 
Conde,  Dominacion  de  los  Arabes,  torn.  iii.  cap.  39.)  Tho  letter  of 
the  inhabitants,  quoted  at  length  by  Pulgar,  would  seem  to  be  a  refu- 
tation of  this.  And  yet  there  are  good  grounds  for  suspecting  false 
play  on  the  part  of  the  ambassador  Dordux,  since  the  Castilian  writers 
admit  that  he  was  exempted,  with  forty  of  his  friends,  from  the  doo;n 
of  slavery  and  forfeiture  of  property  passed  upon  his  fellow-citizens. 


36 


IVA/!   OF  GRANADA. 


i 


and  bells,  the  symbols  of  Christian  worship,  were  dis- 
tributed in  profusion  among  the  sacred  edifices ;  where, 
says  the  Catholic  chronicler  last  quoted,  **  the  celestial 
music  of  their  chimes,  sounding  at  every  hour  of  the 
day  and  night,  caused  perpetual  torment  to  the  ears  of 
the  infidel.""* 

On  the  eighteenth  day  of  August,  being  somewhat 
more  than  three  months  from  the  date  of  opening 
trenches,  Ferdinand  and  Isabella  made  their  entrance 
into  the  conquered  city,  attended  by  the  court,  the 
clergy,  and  the  whole  of  their  military  array.  The 
procession  moved  in  solemn  state  up  the  principal 
streets,  now  deserted  and  hushed  in  ominous  silence, 
to  the  new  cathedral  of  St.  Mary,  where  mass  was  per- 
formed ;  and,  as  the  glorious  anthem  of  the  Te  Deum 
rose  for  the  first  time  within  its  ancient  walls,  the 
sovereigns,  together  with  the  whole  army,  prostrated 
themselves  in  grateful  adoration  of  the  Lord  of  hosts, 
who  had  thus  reinstated  then  in  the  domains  of  their 
ancestors. 

The  most  affecting  incident  was  afforded  by  the  mul- 
titude of  Christian  captives  who  were  rescued  from  the 
Moorish  dungeons.  They  were  brought  before  the 
sovereigns,  with  their  limbs  heavily  manacled,  their 
beards  descending  to  their  waists,  and  their  sallow 
visages  emaciated  by  captivity  and  famine.  Every  eye 
was  suffused  with  tears  at  the  spectacle.  Many  recog- 
nized their  ancient  friends,  of  whose  fate  they  had  long 

^  Bernaldez,  Reyes  Catolicos,  MS.,  cvp,  85. — The  reader  may  re- 
member Don  Quixote's  rebuke  of  Master  Peter,  the  unlucky  pu])pet- 
man,  for  violating  historical  accuracy  by  introducing  bells  into  his 
Moorish  pantomime.     Part.  2,  cap.  26. 


CONQUEST  OF  MALAGA. 


37 


been  ignorant.  Some  had  lingered  in  captivity  ten  or 
fifteen  years;  and  among  them  were  several  belonging 
to  the  best  families  in  Spain.  On  entering  the  pres- 
ence, they  would  have  testified  their  gratitude  by 
irowing  themselves  at  the  feet  of  the  sovereigns ;  but 
the  latter,  raising  them  up  and  mingling  their  tears 
with  those  of  the  liberated  captives,  caused  their  fetters 
to  be  removed,  and,  after  administering  to  their  neces- 
sities, dismissed  them  with  liberal  presents.*^ 

The  fortress  of  Gebalfaro  surrendered  on  the  day 
after  the  occupation  of  Malaga  by  the  Spaniards.  The 
gallant  Zegri  chieftain,  Hamet  Zeli,  was  loaded  with 
chains ;  and,  being  asked  why  he  had  persisted  so  ob- 
stinately in  his  rebellion,  boldly  answered,  **  Because  I 
was  commissioned  to  defend  the  place  to  the  last  ex- 
tremity; and,  if  I  had  been  properly  supported,  I 
would  have  died  sooner  than  surrender  now !" 

The  doom  of  the  vanquished  was  now  to  be  pro- 
nounced. On  entering  the  city,  orders  had  been  issued 
to  the  Spanish  soldiery,  prohibiting  them  under  the 
severest  penalties  from  molesting  either  the  |)ersons  or 
property  of  the  inhabitants.  These  latter  were  directed 
to  remain  in  their  respective  mansions  with  a  guard  set 
over  them,  while  the  cravings  of  appetite  were  supplied 
by  a  liberal  distribution  of  food.  At  length,  the  whole 
population  of  the  city,  comprehending  every  age  and 
sex,  was  commanded  to  repair  to  the  great  court-yard 
of  the  alcazaba,  which  was  overlooked  on  all  sides  by 


1  Carhajal,  whose  meagre  annals  have  scarcely  any  merit  beyond 
that  of  a  mere  chronological  table,  postpones  the  surrender  till  Sep- 
tember. Anales,  ano  1487. — Marmol,  Rebelion  de  los  Moriscos,  lib. 
X,  cap.  14. 


38 


IV/I/!   OF  GHANA  DA. 


lofty  ramparts  garrisoned  by  the  Spanish  soldiery.  To 
this  place,  the  scene  of  many  a  Moorish  triumph, 
where  the  spoil  of  the  border  foray  had  been  often  dis- 
played, and  which  might  still  be  emblazoned  with  the 
trophy  of  many  a  Christian  banner,  the  people  of  Mal- 
aga now  directed  their  steps.  As  the  multitude  swarmed 
through  the  streets,  filled  with  boding  apprehensions 
of  their  fate,  they  wrung  their  hands,  and,  raising  their 
eyes  to  heaven,  uttered  the  most  piteous  lamentations. 
**0h  Malaga,"  they  cried,  "renowned  and  beautiful 
city,  how  are  thy  sons  about  to  forsake  thee  !  Could 
not  thy  soil,  on  which  they  first  drew  breath,  be  suf- 
fered to  cover  them  in  death?  Where  is  now  the 
strength  of  thy  towers,  where  the  beauty  of  thy  edifices? 
The  strength  of  thy  walls,  alas,  could  not  avail  thy 
children,  for  they  had  sorely  displeased  their  Creator. 
What  shall  become  of  thy  old  men  and  thy  matrons, 
or  of  thy  young  maidens  delicately  nurtured  within  thy 
halls,  when  they  shall  feel  the  iron  yoke  of  bondage  ? 
Can  thy  barbarous  conquerors  without  remorse  thus 
tear  asunder  the  dearest  ties  of  life?"  Such  are 
the  melancholy  strains  in  which  the  Castilian  chroni- 
cler has  given  utterance  to  the  sorrows  of  the  captive 
city."* 

»8  Bleda,  Cor6nica,  lib.  s,  cap.  15. — .\s  a  counterpart  to  the  above 
scene,  twelve  Christian  renegades,  found  in  tlie  city,  were  transfi.xed 
with  canes,  acaHavereados,  a  barbarous  punishment  derived  from  the 
Moors,  which  was  inflicted  by  horsemen  at  full  gallop,  who  discharged 
pointed  reeds  at  the  criminal  until  he  expired  under  repeated  wounds. 
A  number  of  relapsed  Jews  were  at  the  same  time  condemned  to  the 
flames.  "  These,"  says  fatlier  Abarca,  "  were  the  fetes  and  illumina- 
tions most  grateful  to  the  Catholic  piety  of  our  sovereigns"  !  Abarca, 
Reyes  de  Aragon,  torn.  ii.  rey  30,  cai).  3. 


CONQUEST  OF  MALAGA. 


39 


The  dreadful  doom  of  slavery  was  denounced  on  the 
assembled  multitude.  One-third  was  to  be  transported 
into  Africa  in  exchange  for  an  equal  number  of  Chris- 
tian captives  detained  there;  and  all  who  had  relatives 
or  friends  in  this  predicament  were  required  to  furnish 
a  specification  of  them.  Another  third  was  appropriated 
to  reimburse  the  state  for  the  expenses  of  the  war.  The 
remainder  were  to  be  distributed  as  present  at  home 
and  abroad.  Thus,  one  hundred  of  the  flower  of  the 
African  warriors  were  sent  to  the  pope,  who  incorpor.ited 
them  into  his  guard,  and  converted  them  aH  in  th? 
course  of  the  year,  says  the  Curate  of  Los  Palacios, 
into  very  good  Christians.  Fifty  of  the  most  beautiful 
Moorish  girls  were  presented  by  Isabella  to  the  que.  ."i 
of  Naples,  thirty  to  the  queen  of  Portugal,  others  to 
the  ladies  of  her  court ;  and  the  residue  of  both  sexes 
were  apportioned  among  the  nobles,  cavaliers,  and 
inferior  members  of  the  army,  according  to  their  re- 
spective rank  and  services.'' 

As  it  was  apprehended  that  the  Malagans,  rendered 
desperate  by  the  prospect  of  a  hopeless,  interminable 
captivity,  might  destroy  or  secrete  their  jewels,  plate, 
and  other  precious  effects,  in  which  this  wealthy  city 
abounded,  rather  than  suffer  them  to  fall  '"nto  the  hands 
of  their  enemies,  Ferdinand  devised  a  po-'r  expedient 
for  preventing  it.  He  proclaimed  that  he  would  receive 
a  certain  sum,  if  paid  within  nine  mouths,  as  the  ran- 
som of  the  whole  population,  and  that  their  personal 
effects  should  be  admitted  in  part  payment.  This  sura 
averaged  about  thirty  doblas  a  head,  including  in  the 

"9  Pulgar,  Reyes  Catolicos,  ul)i  supra. — Bemaldez,  Reyes  Catolicos, 
MS.,  ubi  supr.i. — Peter  M.irtyr,  Opus  Epist.,  epist.  62. 


40 


WA/i   OF  GRANADA. 


estimate  all  those  who  might  die  before  the  determina- 
tion of  the  period  assigned.  The  ransom  thus  stipulated 
proved  more  than  the  unhappy  people  could  raise,  either 
by  themselves,  or  agents  employed  to  solicit  contribu- 
tions among  their  brethren  of  Granada  and  Africa;  at 
the  same  time,  it  so  far  deluded  their  hopes  that  they 
gave  in  a  full  inventory  of  their  effects  to  the  treasury. 
By  this  shrewd  device,  Ferdinand  obtained  complete 
possession  both  of  the  persons  and  property  of  his 
victims.** 

Malaga  was  computed  to  contain  from  eleven  to 
fifteen  thousand  inhabitants,  exclusive  of  several  thou- 
sand foreign  auxiliaries,  within  its  gates  at  the  time  of 
surrender.  One  cannot,  at  this  day,  read  the  melan- 
choly details  of  its  story  without  feelings  of  horror  and 
indignation.  It  is  impossible  to  vindicate  the  dreadful 
sentence  passed  on  this  unfortunate  people  for  a  display 
of  heroism  which  should  have  excited  admiration  in 
every  generous  bosom.  It  was  obviously  most  repugnant 
to  Isabella's  natural  disposition,  and  must  be  admitted 
to  leave  a  stain  on  her  memory  which  no  coloring  of 
history  can  conceal.  It  may  find  some  palliation, 
however,  in  the  bigotry  of  the  age,  the  more  excusable 
in  a  woman,  whom  education,  general  example,  and 
natural  distrust  of  herself,  accustomed  to  rely,  in  matters 
of  conscience,  on  the  spiritual  guides  whose  piety  and 

30  Bernaldez,  Reyes  Catolicos,  MS.,  cap.  87. — L.  Marineo,  Cosas 
memorables,  fol.  176. — Conde,  Dominacion  de  los  Arabes,  torn.  iii.  p. 
238. — Cardonne,  Hist,  de  I'Afrique  et  de  I'Espagne,  torn.  iii.  p.  296. — 
Carbajal,  Anales,  MS.,  afio  1487. — Not  a  word  of  comment  escapes 
the  Castilian  historians  on  this  merciless  rigor  of  the  conqueror  towards 
the  vanquished.  It  is  evident  that  Ferdinand  did  no  violence  to  the 
feelings  of  his  orthodox  subjects.     Tacendo  clamant. 


CONQUEST  OF  MALAGA. 


41 


professional  learning  seemed  to  qualify  them  for  the 
trust.  Even  in  this  very  transaction  she  fell  far  short 
of  the  suggestions  of  some  of  her  counsellors,  who 
urged  her  to  put  every  inhabitant  without  exception  to 
the  sword;  which,  they  afl&rmed,  would  be  a  just  re- 
quital of  their  obstinate  rebellion,  and  would  prove  a 
wholesome  warning  to  others !  We  are  not  told  who 
the  advisers  of  this  precious  measure  were;  but  the 
whole  experience  of  this  reign  shows  that  we  shall 
scarcely  wrong  the  clergy  much  by  imputing  it  to  them. 
That  their  arguments  could  warp  so  enlightened  a  mind 
as  that  of  Isabella  from  the  natural  principles  of  justice 
and  humanity,  furnishes  a  remarkable  proof  of  the 
ascendency  which  the  priesthood  usurped  over  the  most 
gifted  intellects,  and  of  their  gross  abuse  of  it,  before 
the  Reformation,  by  breaking  the  seals  set  on  the  sacred 
volume,  opened  to  mankind  the  uncorrupted  channel 
of  divine  truth. '' 


31  Bernaldez,  Reyes  Catolicos,  MS.,  cap.  87. — Bleda,  Coronica,  lib. 
5,  cap.  13. — About  four  hundred  and  fifty  Moorish  Jews  were  ransomed 
by  a  wealthy  Israelite  of  Castile  for  27,000  doblas  of  gold ;  a  proof 
that  the  Jewish  stock  was  one  which  thrived  amidst  persecution.  It  is 
scarcely  possible  that  the  circumstantial  Pulgar  should  have  omitted  to 
notice  so  important  a  fact  as  the  scheme  of  the  Moorish  ransom,  had 
it  occurred.  It  is  still  more  improbable  that  the  honest  Curate  of  Los 
Palacios  should  have  fi\bricated  it.  Any  one  who  attempts  to  reconcile 
the  discrepancies  of  even  contemporary  historians  will  have  Loid 
Orford's  exclamation  to  his  son  Horace  brought  to  his  mind  ten  times 
a  day:  "Oh!  read  me  not  history,  for  that  I  know  to  be  false."* 


•  [The  exact  terms  of  the  offer  made  to  the  inhabitants  of  Malaga 
in  the  name  of  the  Spanish  sovertjigns  are  to  be  found  in  a  document 
bearing  date  Sept.  4, 1487.  which  is  preserved  in  the  Archives  of  Simancas 
and  printed  in  the  eighth  volume  of  the  Coleccion  de  Documentos 


4* 


HTAJl  OF  GRANADA. 


m 


The  fate  of  Malaga  may  be  said  to  have  decided  that 
of  Granada.  The  latter  was  now  shut  out  from  the 
most  important  ports  along  her  coast;  and  she  was 
environed  on  every  point  of  her  territory  by  her  war- 
like foe,  so  that  she  could  hardly  hope  more  from 
subsequent  efforts,  however  strenuous  and  united,  than 
to  postpone  the  inevitable  hour  of  dissolution.  The 
cruel  treatment  of  Malaga  was  the  prelude  to  the  long 
series  of  persecutions  which  awaited  the  wretched  Mos- 
lems in  the  land  of  their  ancestors;  in  that  land  over 
which  the  "star  of  Islamism,"  to  borrow  their  own 
metaphor,  had  shone  in  full  brightness  for  nearly  eight 
centuries,  but  where  it  was  now  fast  descending  amid 
clouds  and  tempests  to  the  horizon. 

The  first  care  of  the  sovereigns  was  directed  towards 
repeopling  the  depopulated  city  with  their  own  subjects. 
Houses  and  lands  were  freely  granted  to  such  as  would 
settle  there-  Numerous  towns  and  villages  with  a  wide 
circuit  of  territory  were  placed  under  its  civil  jurisdic- 
tion, and  it  was  made  the  head  of  a  diocese  embracing 
most  of  the  recent  conquests  in  the  south  and  west 
of  Granada.  These  inducements,  combined  with  the 
natural  advantages  of  position  and  climate,  soon  caused 
the  tide  of  Christian  population  to  flow  into  the  de- 
serted city;  but  it  was  very  long  before  it  again  reached 

in^ditos  para  la  Historia  de  EspaRa.  The  ransom  for  each  person  was 
fixed  at  thirty  dobliu  dr  oro  of  a  specified  weight,  or  the  equivalent  in 
wines,  jewels,  or  silks.  To  facilitate  speedy  payment,  the  iieople  were 
to  dispose  of  their  effects  at  public  auction.  If  the  sum  thus  raised 
fell  short  of  two-thirds  of  the  whole  amount  required,  the  difference 
ivas  to  be  made  up  within  sixty  days.  The  remaining  third  was  to  be 
paid  in  two  instalments,  in  April  and  October,  7488,  hostages  in  suffi- 
cient numbers  bein;  retained  till  the  final  payment — Ed.] 


CO  ACQUEST  OF  MALAGA. 


43 


the  degree  of  commercial  consequence  to  which  it  had 
been  raised  by  the  Moors." 

After  these  salutary  arrangements,  the  Spanish  sover- 
eigns led  back  their  victorious  legions  in  triumph  to 
Cordova;  whence  dispersing  to  their  various  homes, 
they  prepared,  by  a  winter's  repose,  for  new  campaigns 
and  more  brilliant  conquests. 

*»  Pulgar,  Reyes  Catdlicos,  cap.  94. — In  July,  1501,  we  find  a  royal 
ordinance  authorizing  an  immunity  from  various  taxes,  and  other  im- 
portant privileges,  to  Malaga  and  its  territory,  for  the  further  encourage* 
ment  of  population  in  the  conquered  city, — Col.  de  C6d.,  torn.  vL  00. 
3i(Z. 


CHAPTER    XIV. 

WAR    OF    GRANADA.— CONQUEST   OF    BAZA. — SUBMISSION 

OF   EL   ZAGAL. 

X487-I489. 

The  Sovereigns  visit  Aragon. — The  King  lays  Siege  to  Baza. — Its  great 
Strength. — Gardens  cleared  of  their  Timber. — The  Queen  raises  the 
Spirits  of  her  Troops.  ^Her  patriotic  Sacrifices. — Suspension  of  Arms. 
— Baza  surrenders. — Treaty  with  El  Zagal. — Difficulties  of  the  Cam- 
paign.— Isabella's  Popularity  and  Influence. 


In  the  autumn  of  1487,  Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  ac- 
companied by  the  younger  branches  of  the  royal  family, 
visited  Aragon,  to  obtain  the  recognition  from  the  cortes 
of  Prince  John's  succession,  the  boy  being  now  in  his 
tenth  year,  as  well  as  to  repress  the  disorder  into  which 
the  country  had  fallen  during  the  long  absence  of  its 
sovereigns.  To  this  end,  the  principal  cities  and  com- 
munities of  Aragon  had  recently  adopted  the  institution 
of  the  hermandad,  organized  on  similar  principles  to 
that  of  Castile.  Ferdinand,  on  his  arrival  at  Saragossa 
in  the  month  of  November,  gave  his  royal  sanction  to 
the  association,  extending  the  term  of  its  duration  to 
five  years ;  a  measure  extremely  unpalatable  to  the  great 
feudal  nobility,  whose  power,  or  rather  abuse  of  power, 
was  considerably  abridged  by  this  popular  military  force.  * 

»  Zurita,  Anales,  tom.  iv.  fol.  351,  352,  356. — Mariana,  Hist,  de  Es- 
pafia,  tom.  ii.  lib.  25,  cap.  12.— Pulgar,  Reyes  Catolicos,  part.  3,  cap. 

95- 

(44) 


SIEGE   OF  BAZA. 


45 


The  sovereigns,  after  accomplishing  the  objects  of 
their  visit,  and  obtaining  an  appropriation  from  the 
cortes  for  the  Moorish  war,  passed  into  Valencia,  where 
measures  of  like  efficiency  were  adopted  for  restoring 
the  au'.V  'ity  of  the  law,  which  was  exposed  to  such 
perpetual  pses  in  this  turbulent  age,  even  in  the  best- 
constituted  governments,  as  required  for  its  protection 
the  utmost  vigilance  on  the  part  of  those  intrusted  with 
the  supreme  executive  power.  From  Valencia  the  court 
proceeded  to  Murcia,  where  Ferdinand,  in  the  month 
of  June,  1488,  assumed  the  command  of  an  army 
amounting  to  less  than  twenty  thousand  men,  a  small 
force  compared  with  those  usually  levied  on  these  occa- 
sions ;  it  being  thought  advisable  to  suffer  the  nation 
to  breathe  a  while,  after  the  exhausting  efforts  in  which 
it  had  been  unintermittingly  engaged  for  so  many 
years. 

Ferdinand,  crossing  the  eastern  borders  of  Granada, 
at  no  great  distance  from  Vera,  which  speedily  opened 
its  gates,  kept  along  the  southern  slant  of  the  coast  as 
far  as  Almeria ;  whence,  after  experiencing  some  rough 
treatment  in  a  sortie  of  the  garrison,  he  marched  by 
a  northerly  circuit  on  Baza,  for  the  purpose  of  recon- 
noitring its  position,  as  his  numbers  were  altogether 
in.  iequate  to  its  siege.  A  division  of  the  army  under 
the  marquis  duke  of  Cadiz  suffered  itself  to  be  drawn 
here  into  an  ambuscade  by  the  wily  old  monarch  El 
Zagal,  who  lay  in  Baza  with  a  strong  force.  After  ex- 
tricating his  troops  with  some  difficulty  and  loss  from 
this  perilous  predicament,  Ferdinand  retreated  on  his 
own  dominions  by  the  way  of  Huescar,  where  he  dis- 
banded his  army,  and  withdrew  to  offer  up  his  devo- 


46 


WAR   OF  GRANADA. 


11 


tions  at  the  cross  of  Caravaca.  The  campaign,  though 
signalized  by  no  brilliant  achievement,  and  indeed 
clouded  with  some  slight  reverses,  secured  the  surrender 
of  a  considerable  number  of  fortresses  and  towns  of  in- 
ferior note.' 

The  Moorish  chief.  El  Zagal,  elated  by  his  recent 
success,  made  frequent  forays  into  the  Christian  terri- 
tories, sweeping  off  the  flocks,  herds,  and  growing 
crops  of  the  husbandman ;  while  the  garrisons  of  Al- 
meria  and  Salobrena,  and  the  bold  inhabitants  of  the 
valley  of  Purchena,  poured  a  similar  devastating  war- 
fare over  the  eastern  borders  of  Granada  into  Murcia. 
To  meet  this  pressure,,  the  Spanish  sovereigns  rein- 
forced the  frontier  with  additional  levies  under  Juan 
de  Benavides  and  Garcilasso  de  la  Vega;  while  Chris- 
tian knights,  whose  prowess  ib  attested  in  many  a 
Moorish  lay,  flocked  there  from  all  quarters,  as  to  the 
theatre  of  war. 

During  the  following  winter,  of  1488,  Ferdinand  and 
Isabella  occupied  themselves  with  the  interior  govern- 
ment of  Castile,  and  particularly  the  administration  of 
justice.  A  commission  was  specially  appointed  to  su- 
pervise the  conduct  of  the  corregidors  and  subordinate 
magistrates,  "so  that  every  one,"  says  Pulgar,  *♦  was 
most  careful  to  discharge  h^'s  duty  faithfully,  in  order 
to  escape  the  penalty  which  was  otherwise  sure  to  over- 
take him.  "3 

»  Ferreras,  Hist.  d'Espagne,  torn.  viil.  p.  76. — Pulgar,  Reyes  Cat61i- 
cos,  cap.  98. — Zufliga,  Annales  de  Sevilla,  p.  402. — Cardonne,  Hist,  de 
I'Afrique  et  de  I'Espagne,  torn.  iii.  pp.  298, 299. — Carbajal,  Anales,  MS., 
alio  1488. 

3  Conde,  Dominacion  de  los  Arabes,  torn.  iii.  pp.  239,  240. — Pulgar, 
Reyes  Cat61icos,  cap,  100,  loi.— During  the  preceding  year,  while  the 


I 


SIEGE   OF  BAZA. 


47 


While  at  Valladolid,  the  sovereigns  received  an  em- 
bassy from  Maximilian,  son  of  the  emperor  Frederick 
the  Fourth*  of  Germany,  soliciting  their  co-operation 
in  his  designs  against  France  for  the  restitution  of  his 
late  wife's  rightful  inheritance,  the  duchy  of  Burgundy, 
and  engaging  in  turn  to  support  them  in  their  claims 
on  Roussillon  and  Cerdagne.  The  Spanish  monarchs 
had  long  entertained  many  causes  of  discontent  with 
the  French  court,  both  with  regard  to  the  mortgaged 
territory  of  Roussillon  and  the  kingdom  of  Navarre ; 
and  they  watched  with  jealous  eye  the  daily  increasing 
authority  of  their  formidable  neighbor  on  their  own 
frontier.  They  had  been  induced,  in  the  preceding 
summer,  to  equip  an  armament  at  Biscay  and  Guipus- 
coa,  CO  support  the  duke  of  Brittany  in  his  wars  with 
the  French  regent,  the  celebrated  Anne  de  Beaujeu. 

court  was  at  Murcia,  we  find  one  of  the  examples  of  prompt  and  se- 
vere exercise  of  justice  which  sometimes  occur  in  this  reign.  One  of 
the  royal  collectors  having  been  resisted  and  personally  maltreated  by 
the  alcayde  of  Salvatierra,  a  place  belonging  to  the  crown,  and  by  the 
alcalde  of  a  territorial  court  of  the  duke  of  Alva,  the  queen  caused 
one  of  the  royal  judges  privately  to  enter  into  the  place  and  take 
cognizance  of  the  affair.  The  latter,  after  a  brief  investigation,  com- 
manded the  alcayde  to  be  hung  up  over  his  own  fortress,  and  the  al- 
calde to  be  delivered  over  to  the  court  of  chancery  at  Valladolid,  who 
ordered  his  right  hand  to  be  amputated  and  banished  him  the  realm. 
This  summary  justice  was  perhaps  necessary  in  a  community  that 
might  be  said  to  be  in  transition  from  a  state  of  barbarism  to  that  of 
civilization,  and  had  a  salutary  effect  in  proving  to  the  people  that  no 
rank  was  elevated  enough  to  raise  the  offender  above  the  law.  Pulgar, 
cap.  99. 


*  [Styled  usually  Frederick  the  Third,  the  claims  of"  Frederick  the 
Handsome,"  whether  as  rival  or  colleague  of  Louis  of  Bavaria,  being 
properly  disallowed  by  most  historians. — ED.] 


48 


IVAH   OF  G  HA  ATA  DA. 


This  expedition,  which  proved  disastrous,  was  followed 
by  another  in  the  spring  of  the  succeeding  year.*  But, 
notwithstanding  these  occasional  episodes  to  the  great 
work  in  which  they  were  engaged,  they  had  little  leisure 
for  extended  operations;  and,  although  they  entered 
into  the  proposed  treaty  of  alliance  with  Maximilian, 
they  do  not  seem  to  have  contemplated  any  movement 
of  importance  before  the  termination  of  the  Moorish 
war.  The  Flemish  ambassadors,  after  being  enter- 
tained for  forty  J.ays  in  a  style  suited  to  impress  them 
with  high  ideas  of  the  magnificence  of  the  Spanish 
court  and  of  its  friendly  disposition  towards  their 
master,  were  dismissed  with  costly  presents,  and  returned 
to  their  own  country.' 

These  negotiations  show  the  increasing  intimacy 
growing  up  batween  the  European  states,  who,  as  they 
settled  their  domestic  feuds,  had  leisure  to  turn  their 
eyes  abroad  and  enter  into  the  more  extended  field  of 
international  politics.  The  tenor  of  this  treaty  indi- 
cates also  the  direction  which  affairs  were  to  take  when 
the  great  powers  should  be  brought  into  collision  with 
each  other  on  a  common  theatre  of  action. 

4  laligny,  Hist,  de  Charles  VIII.,  pp.  92,  94. — Sismondi,  Hist,  des 
Fnin9ais,  torn.  xv.  p.  77. — Aleson,  Anales  de  Navarra,  torn.  v.  p.  61. — 
Histoire  du  Royaume  de  Navarre,  pp.  578,  579. — Pulgar,  Reyes  Cat6- 
Ucos,  cap.  102. — In  the  first  of  these  expeditions,  more  than  a  thou- 
sand Spaniards  were  slain  or  taken  at  the  disastrous  battle  of  St.  Aubin, 
in  1488,  being  the  same  in  which  Lord  Rivers,  the  English  noble  who 
made  such  a  gallant  figure  at  the  siege  of  Loja,  lost  his  life.  In  the 
spring  of  1489,  the  levies  sent  into  France  amounted  to  two  thousand 
in  number.  These  efforts  abroad,  simultaneous  with  the  great  opera- 
tions of  the  Moorish  war,  show  the  resources  as  well  as  energy  of  the 
sovereigns. 

5  I'ulgar,  Reyes  Catolicos,  ubi  supra. 


SIEGE   OF  BAZA. 


49 


All  thoughts  were  now  concentrated  on  the  prosecu- 
tion of  the  war  with  Granada,  which  it  was  determined 
should  be  conducted  on  a  more  enlarged  scale  than  it 
had  yet  been ;  notwithstanding  the  fearful  pest  which 
had  desolated  the  country  during  the  past  year,  and 
the  extreme  scarcity  of  grain,  owing  to  the  inundations 
caused  by  excessive  rains  in  the  fruitful  provinces  of 
the  south.  The  great  object  proposed  in  this  campaign 
was  the  i^eduction  of  Baza,  the  capital  of  that  division 
of  the  empire  which  belonged  to  El  Zagal.  Besides 
this  important  city,  that  monarch's  dominions  embraced 
the  wealthy  seaport  of  Almeria,  Guadix,  and  numerous 
other  towns  and  villages  of  less  consequence,  together 
with  the  mountain  region  of  the  Alpujarras,  rich  in 
mineral  wealth  \  whose  inhabitants,  famous  for  the  per- 
fection to  which  they  had  carried  the  silk-manufacture, 
were  equally  known  for  their  enterprise  and  courage  in 
war:  so  that  El  Zagal's  division  comprehended  the 
most  potent  and  opulent  portion  of  the  empire.* 

In  the  spring  of  1489,  the  Castilian  court  passed  to 
Jaen,  at  which  place  the  queen  was  to  establish  her 
residence,  as  presenting  the  most  favorable  point  of 
communication  with  the  invading  army.  Ferdinand 
advanced  as  far  as  Sotogordo,  where,  on  the  27th  of 
May,  he  put  himself  at  the  head  of  a  numerous  force, 

'  Bernaldez,  Reyes  Cat61icos,  MS.,  cap.  91. — Zurita,  Anales,  torn, 
iv.  fol.  354. — Bleda,  Coronica,  fol.  607. — Abarca,  Reyes  de  Aragon, 
torn.  ii.  fol.  307. — Such  was  the  scarcity  of  grain  that  tlie  prices  in  1489, 
quoted  by  Bernaldez,  are  double  those  of  the  preceding  year. — Both 
Abarca  and  Zurita  mention  the  report  that  four-fifths  of  the  whole  pop- 
ulation were  swept  away  by  the  pestilence  of  1488.  Zurita  finds  more 
difficulty  in  swallowing  this  monstrous  statement  than  father  Abarca, 
whose  appetite  for  the  marvellous  appears  to  have  been  fully  equal  iv 
that  of  most  of  his  calling  in  Spain. 
Vol.  II.— 4  c 


so 


IVA/i   OF  GKANADA. 


amounting  to  about  fifteen  thousand  horse  and  eighty 
thousand  foot,  including  persons  of  every  description ; 
among  whom  was  gathered,  as  usual,  that  chivalrous 
array  of  nobility  and  knighthood  which,  with  stately 
and  well-appointed  retinues,  was  accustomed  to  follow 
the  royal  standard  in  these  crusades.' 

7  Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  lib.  2,  epist.  70. — Pulgar,  Reyes  Cat61i< 
cos,  cap.  104. — It  may  not  be  amiss  to  specify  the  names  of  the  most 
distinguished  cavaliers  who  usually  attended  the  king  in  these  Moor- 
ish wars ;  the  heroic  ancestors  of  many  a  noble  house  still  extant  in 
Spain : 

Alonso  de  Cardenas,  master  of  Saint  Jago. 

Juan  de  Zuiiiga,  master  of  Alcantara. 

Juan  Garcia  de  Padilla,  master  of  Calatrava. 

Rodrigo  Ponce  de  Leon,  marquis  duke  of  Cadiz. 

Enrique  de  Guzman,  duke  of  Medina  Sidonia. 

Pedro  Manrique,  duke  of  Najera. 

Juan  Pacheco,  duke  of  Escalona,  marquis  of  Villena. 

Juan  Pimentel,  count  of  Benavente. 

Fadrique  de  Toledo,  son  of  the  duke  of  Alva. 

Diego  Fernandez  de  Cordova,  count  of  Cabra. 

Gomez  Alvarez  de  Figueroa,  count  of  Feria. 

Alvaro  Tellez  Giron,  count  of  Urefia. 

Juan  de  Silva,  count  of  Cifuentes. 

Fadrique  Enriquez,  adelantado  of  Andalusia. 

Alonso  Fernandez  de  Cordova,  lord  of  Aguilar. 

Gonsalvo  de  Cordova,  brother  of  the  last,  known  afterwards  as  the 
Great  Captain. 

Luis  Porto-Carrero,  lord  of  Palma. 

Gutierre  de  Cardenas,  first  commander  of  Leon. 

Pedro  Fernandez  de  Velasco,  count  of  Haro,  constable  of  Castile. 

Beltran  de  la  Cueva,  duke  of  Albuquerque. 

Diego  Fernandez  de  Cordova,  alcayde  of  the  royal  pages,  afterwards 
marquis  of  Comaras. 

Alvaro  de  Zuiiiga,  duke  of  Bejar. 

Iriigo  Lopez  de  Mendoza,  count  of  Tendilla,  afterwards  marquU  of 
Mondejar. 

Luis  de  Cerda,  duke  of  Medina  Celi. 


SIEGE  OF  BAZA. 


d< 


The  first  point  against  which  operations  were  directed 
was  the  strong  post  of  Cuxar,  two  leagues  only  from 
Baza,  which  surrendered  after  a  brief  but  desperate 
resistance.  The  occupation  of  this  place,  and  some 
adjacent  fortresses,  left  the  approaches  open  to  El 
Zagal's  capital.  As  the  Spanish  army  toiled  up  the 
heights  of  the  mountain  barrier  which  towers  above 
Baza  on  the  west,  their  advance  was  menaced  by  clouds 
of  Moorish  light  troops,  who  poured  down  a  tempest  of 
musket-balls  and  arrows  on  their  heads.  These,  how- 
ever, were  qui(  kly  dispersed  by  the  advancing  van- 
guard; and  the  Spaniards,  as  they  gained  the  summits 
of  the  hills,  beheld  the  lordly  city  of  Baza,  reposing  in 
the  shadows  of  the  bold  sierra  that  stretches  towards 
the  coast,  and  lying  in  the  bosom  of  a  fruitful  valley 
extending  eight  leagues  in  length  and  three  in  breadth. 
Through  this  valley  flowed  the  waters  of  the  Guadalen- 
tin  and  the  Guadalquiton,  whose  streams  were  con- 
ducted by  a  thousand  canals  over  the  surface  of  the 
vega.  In  the  midst  of  the  plain,  adjoining  the  sub- 
urbs, might  be  descried  the  orchard  or  garden,  as  it 
was  termed,  of  Baza,  a  league  in  length,  covered  with 
a  thick  growth  of  wood,  and  with  numerous  villas  and 
pleasure-houses  of  the  wealthy  citizens,  now  converted 
into  garrisoned  fortresses.  The  suburbs  were  encom- 
passed by  a  low  mud  wall ;  but  the  fortifications  of  the 
city  were  of  uncommon  strength.  The  place,  in  addi- 
tion to  ten  thousand  troops  of  its  own,  was  garrisoned 
by  an  equal  number  from  Almeria;  picked  men,  under 

Iftigo  Lopez  de  Mendoza,  marquis  of  Santillana,  second  duke  of 
Infantado. 
Garcilasso  de  la  Vega,  lord  of  Batras. 


!• 


WAK   OF  GRANADA. 


the  command  of  the  Moorish  prince  Cidi  Yahye,  a 
relative  of  El  Zagal,  who  lay  at  this  time  in  Guadix, 
prepared  to  cover  his  own  dominions  against  any  hostile 
movement  of  his  rival  in  Granada.  These  veterans 
were  commissioned  to  defend  the  place  to  the  Ixst  ex- 
tremity ;  and,  as  due  time  had  been  given  for  prepara- 
tion, the  town  was  victualled  with  fifteen  months' 
provisions,  and  even  the  crops  growing  in  the  vega  had 
been  garnered  before  their  prime,  to  save  them  from 
the  hands  of  the  enemy." 

The  first  operation,  after  the  Christian  army  had  en- 
camped before  the  walls  of  Baza,  was  to  get  possession 
of  the  garden,  without  which  it  would  be  impossible  to 
enforce  a  thorough  blockade,  since  its  labyrinth  of 
avenues  afforded  the  inhabitants  abundant  fac.lities  of 
communication  with  the  surrounding  country.  The 
assault  was  intrusted  to  the  grand  master  of  St.  James, 
supported  by  the  principal  cavaliers,  and  the  king  in 
person.  Their  reception  by  the  enemy  was  such  as 
gave  them  a  foretaste  of  the  perils  and  desperate  daring 
they  were  to  encounter  in  the  present  siege.  The 
broken  surface  of  the  ground,  traversed  by  intricate 
passes  and  thickly  studded  with  trees  and  edifices,  was 
peculiarly  favorable  to  the  desultory  and  illusory  tactics 
of  the  Moors.  The  Spanish  cavalry  was  brought  at 
once  to  a  stand ;  the  ground  proving  impracticable  for 
it,  it  was  dismounted,  and  led  to  the  charge  by  its  offi- 
cers on  foot.     The  men,  however,  were  soon  scattered 

•  Zurita,  Anales,  torn.  iv.  fol.  360. — Conde,  Dominacion  de  los 
Arabes,  torn.  iii.  p.  24T. — Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,lib.  2,  epist.  70, — 
Estrada,  Poblacion  de  Espafia,  torn.  ii.  fol.  239. — Marmol,  Rebelion 
de  los  Moriscos,  lib.  1,  cap.  16. 


i    ■ 

r 


SIEGE   OF  BAZA, 


%% 


far  asunder  from  their  banners  and  their  leaders.  Fer- 
dinand, who  from  a  central  position  endeavored  to 
overlook  the  field,  with  the  design  of  supporting  the 
attack  on  the  points  most  requiring  it,  soon  lost  sight 
of  his  columns  amid  the  precipitous  ravines  and  the 
dense  masses  of  foliage  which  everywhere  intercepted 
the  view.  The  combat  was  carried  on,  hand  to  hand, 
in  the  utmost  confusion.  Still  the  Spaniards  pressed 
forward,  and,  after  a  desperate  struggle  for  twelve  hours, 
in  which  many  of  the  bravest  on  both  sides  fell,  and  the 
Moslem  chief,  Reduan  Zafarga,  had  four  horses  su(  ccs- 
sively  killed  under  him,  the  enemy  were  beaten  back 
behind  the  intrenchments  that  covered  the  suburbs, 
and  the  Spaniards,  hastily  constructing  a  defence  of 
palisades,  pitched  their  tents  on  the  field  of  battle,' 

The  following  morning  Ferdinand  had  the  mortifica- 
tion to  observe  that  the  ground  was  too  much  broken, 
and  obstructed  with  wood,  to  afford  a  suitable  place 
for  a  general  encampment.  To  evacuate  his  position, 
however,  in  the  face  of  the  enemy,  was  a  delicate 
manoeuvre,  and  must  necessarily  expose  him  to  severe 
loss.  This  he  obviated,  in  a  great  measure,  by  a  for- 
tunate stratagem.  He  commanded  the  tents  nearest 
the  town  to  be  left  standing,  and  thus  succeeded  in 
drawing  off  the  greater  part  of  his  forces  before  the 
enemy  was  aware  of  his  intention. 

After  regaining  his  former  position,  a  council  of  war 


9  Pulgar,  Reye3  Cat61icos,  cap.  io6,  107. — Conde,  Dominacion  de 
los  Arabes,  torn.  iii.  cap.  40. — Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  epist.  71.— 
Pulgar  relates  these  particulars  with  a  perspicuity  very  different  from 
his  entangled  narrative  of  some  of  the  preceding  operations  in  this  war. 
Both  he  and  Martyr  were  present  during  the  whole  siege  of  Baza. 


54 


WAR   OF  GRANADA. 


was  summoned  to  deliberate  on  the  course  next  to  be 
pursued.  The  chiefs  were  filled  with  despondency,  as 
they  revolved  the  difficulties  of  their  situation.  They 
almost  despaired  of  enforcing  the  blockade  of  a  place 
whose  peculiar  situation  gave  it  such  advantages.  Even 
could  this  be  effected,  the  camp  would  be  exposed,  they 
argued,  to  the  assaults  of  a  desperate  garrison  on  the 
one  hand,  and  of  the  populous  city  of  Guadix,  hardly 
twenty  miles  distant,  on  the  other;  while  the  good 
faith  of  Granada  could  scarcely  be  expected  to  outlive 
a  single  reverse  of  fortune;  so  that,  instead  of  besieging, 
they  might  be  more  properly  regarded  as  themselves 
besieged.  In  addition  to  these  evils,  the  winter  fre- 
quently set  in  with  much  rigor  in  this  quarter ;  and  the 
torrents,  descending  from  the  mountains,  and  mingling 
with  the  waters  of  the  valley,  might  overwhelm  the 
camp  with  an  inundation,  which,  if  it  did  not  sweep  it 
away  at  once,  would  expose  it  to  the  perils  of  famine  by 
cutting  oft*  all  external  communication.  Under  these 
gloomy  impressions,  many  of  the  council  urged  Ferdi- 
nand to  break  up  his  position  at  once,  and  postpone  all 
operations  on  Baza  until  the  reduction  of  the  surround- 
ing country  should  make  it  comparatively  easy.  Even 
the  marquis  of  Cadiz  gave  in  to  this  opinion ;  and 
Gutierre  de  Cardenas,  commander  of  Leon,  a  cavalier 
deservedly  high  in  the  confidence  of  the  king,  was 
almost  the  only  person  of  consideration  decidedly  op- 
posed to  it.  In  this  perplexity,  Ferdinand,  as  usual 
in  similar  exigencies,  resolved  to  take  counsel  of  the 
queen." 

»o  Bernaldez,  Reyes  Catolicos,  MS,,  cap.  92. — Cardonne,  Hist,  de 
I'Afrique  et  de  I'Espagne,  torn.  iii.  pp.  299,  300. — Bleda,  Cor6nica,  p. 


j»! 


SIEGE    OF  BAZA. 


55 


Isabella  received  her  husband's  despatches  a  few 
hours  after  they  were  written,  by  means  of  the  regular 
line  of  posts  maintained  between  the  camp  and  hei 
station  at  Jaen.  She  was  filled  with  chagrin  at  their 
import,  from  which  she  plainly  saw  that  all  her  mighty 
preparations  were  about  to  vanish  into  air.  Without 
assuming  the  responsibility  of  deciding  the  proposed 
question,  however,  she  besought  her  husband  not  to 
distrust  the  providence  of  God,  which  had  conducted 
them  through  so  many  perils  towards  the  consummation 
of  their  wishes.  She  reminded  him  that  the  Moorish 
fortunes  were  never  at  so  low  an  ebb  as  at  present,  and 
that  their  own  operations  could  probably  never  be  re- 
sumed on  such  a  formidable  scale  or  under  so  favorable 
auspices  as  now,  when  their  arms  had  not  been  stained 
with  a  single  important  reverse.  She  concluded  with 
the  assurance  that,  if  his  soldiers  would  be  true  to  their 

6ii. — Garibay,  Compendio,  torn.  ii.  p.  664. — Don  Gutierre  de  Car- 
denas, who  possessed  so  high  a  place  in  the  confidence  of  the  sove- 
reigns, occupied  a  station  in  the  queen's  household,  as  we  have  seen, 
at  the  time  of  her  marriage  with  Ferdinand.  His  discretion  and  gen- 
eral ability  enabled  him  to  retain  the  influence  which  he  had  early 
acquired,  as  is  shown  by  a  popular  distich  of  that  time : 

"  Cardenas,  y  el  Cardenal,  y  Chacon,  y  Fray  Mortero, 
Traen  la  Corte  al  retortero." 

Fray  Mor;ero  was  Don  Alonso  dc  Burgos,  bishop  of  Palencia,  con- 
fessor of  the  sovereigns.  Don  Juan  Chacon  was  the  son  of  Gonsalvo, 
who  had  the  care  of  Don  Alfonso  and  the  queen  during  her  minority, 
when  he  was  induced  by  the  liberal  largesses  of  John  II.  of  Aragon  to 
promote  her  marriage  with  his  son  Ferdinand.  The  elder  Chacon  was 
treated  by  the  sovereigns  with  the  greatest  deference  and  respect,  being 
usually  called  by  them  "  father."  Afii-i  his  death,  they  continued  to 
manifest  a  similar  regard  towards  Don  Juan,  his  eldest  son,  and  heir 
of  his  ample  honors  and  estates.  Salazar  de  Mendoza,  Dignidades, 
lib.  4,  cap.  I. — Oviedo,  Quincuagenas,  MS,,  bat.  i,  quinc,  2,  dial,  i,  3. 


56 


WAR-   OF  GRANADA. 


m 

'4 


duty,  they  might  rely  on  her  for  the  faithful  discharge 
of  hers  in  furnishing  them  with  all  the  requisite  sup- 
plies. 

The  exhilarating  tone  of  this  letter  had  an  instanta- 
neous effect,  silencing  the  scruples  of  the  most  timid, 
and  confirming  the  confidence  of  the  others.  The  sol- 
diers, in  particular,  who  had  received  with  dissatisfac- 
tion some  intimation  of  what  was  passing  in  the  council, 
welcomed  it  with  generous  enthusiasm  ;  and  every  heart 
seemed  now  intent  on  furthering  the  wishes  of  their 
heroic  queen  by  prosecuting  the  siege  with  the  utmost 
vigor. 

The  army  was  accordingly  distributed  into  two 
encampments  >•  one  under  the  marquis  duke  of  Cadiz, 
supported  by  the  artillery,  the  other  under  King  Fer- 
dinand, on  the  opposite  side  of  the  city.  Between  the 
two  lay  the  garden  or  orchard  before  mentioned,  ex- 
tending a  league  in  length  ;  so  that,  in  order  to  connect 
the  works  of  the  two  camps,  it  became  necessary  to  get 
possession  of  this  contested  ground,  and  to  clear  it  of 
the  heavy  timber  with  which  it  was  covered. 

This  laborious  operation  was  intrusted  to  the  com- 
mander of  Leon,  and  the  work  was  covered  by  a  de- 
tachment of  seven  thousand  troops,  posted  in  such  a 
manner  as  to  check  the  sallies  of  the  garrison.  Not- 
withstanding four  thousand  taladores,  or  pioneers,  were 
employed  in  the  task,  the  forest  was  so  dense,  and  the 
sorties  from  the  city  so  annoying,  that  the  work  of  de- 
vastation did  not  advance  more  than  ten  paces  a  day, 
and  was  not  completed  before  the  expiration  of  seven 
weeks.  When  the  ancient  groves,  so  long  the  orna- 
ment and  protection  of  the  city,  were  levelled  to  the 


SIEGE    OF  BAZA. 


57 


ground,  preparations  were  made  for  connecting  the 
two  camps  by  a  deep  trench,  through  which  the  moun- 
tain waters  were  made  to  flow;  while  the  borders  were 
fortified  with  palisades,  constructed  of  the  timber  lately 
hewn,  together  with  strong  towers  of  mud  or  clay, 
arranged  at  regular  intervals.  In  this  manner  the  in- 
vestment of  the  city  was  complete  on  the  side  of  the 
vega. " 

As  means  of  communication  still  remained  open, 
however,  by  the  opposite  sierra,  defences  of  similar 
strength,  consisting  of  two  stone  walls  separated  by  a 
deep  trench,  were  made  to  run  along  the  rocky  heights 
and  ravines  of  the  mountains  until  they  touched  the 
extremities  of  the  fortifications  on  the  plain  ;  and  thus 
Baza  was  encompassed  by  an  unbroken  line  of  circum- 
vallation. 

In  the  progress  of  the  laborious  work,  which  occu- 
pied ten  thousand  men,  under  the  indefatigable  com- 
mander of  Leon,  for  the  space  of  two  months,  it  would 
have  been  easy  for  the  people  of  Guadix,  ,r  <  f  Granada, 
by  co-operation  with  the  sallies  of  the  besicp;':  %  to  place 
the  Christian  army  in  great  peril.  Pvmie  ''e-;;''e  demon- 
stration of  such  a  movement  was  made  iX  Guadi ;  out 
it  was  easily  disconcerted.  Indeed.  .1,'  Zagal  wab  kept 
in  check  by  the  fear  of  leaving  his  ovtii  '.c/ritory  open 
to  his  rival  should  he  march  agaiast  the  Christians. 
Abdallah,  in  the  mean  wh'le,  lay  inactive  in  Granada, 
incurring  the  odium  and  contempt  of  lis  people,  who 
stigmatized  him  as  a  Christian  in  heart,  and  a  pensioner 

"  Cardonne,  Hist,  de  I'Afrique  et  de  I'Espagne,  torn.  iii.  p.  y  4. — 
Pulgar,  Reyes  Catolicos,  cap.  109. — Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Episi  ,  hD.  3, 
epist.  73. — Bcrnaldcz,  Reyes  Catolicos,  MS.,  cap.  92. 


S8 


PV/IA'   OF  GKANADA. 


of  the  Spanish  sovereigns.  Their  discontent  gradually 
swelled  into  a  rebellion,  which  was  suppressed  by  him 
with  a  severity  that  at  length  induced  a  sullen  acqui- 
escence in  a  rule  which,  however  inglorious,  was  at 
least  attended  with  temporary  security." 

While  the  camp  lay  before  Baza,  a  singular  mission 
was  received  from  the  sultan  of  Egypt,  who  had  been 
solicited  by  the  Moors  of  Granada  to  interpose  in  their 
behalf  with  the  Spanish  sovereigns.  Two  Franciscan 
friars,  members  of  a  religious  community  in  Palestine, 
were  bearers  of  despatches,  which,  after  remonstrating 
with  the  sovereigns  on  then  persecution  of  the  Moors, 
contrasted  it  with  the  protection  uniformly  extended 
by  the  sultan  to  the  Christians  in  his  dominions.  The 
communication  concluded  with  menacing  a  retaliation 
of  similar  severities  on  these  latter,  unless  the  sovereigns 
desisted  from  their  hostilities  against  Granada. 

From  the  camp,  the  two  ambassadors  proceeded  to 
Jaen,  where  they  were  received  by  the  queen  with  all 
the  deference  due  to  their  holy  profession,  which  seemed 
to  derive  additional  sanctity  from  the  spot  in  which  it 
was  exercised.  The  menacing  import  of  the  sultan's 
communication,  however,  had  no  power  to  shake  the 
purposes  of  Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  who  made  answer 
that  they  had  uniformly  observed  the  same  policy  in 
regard  to  their  Mahometan  as  to  their  Christian  subjects, 
but  that  they  could  no  longer  submit  to  see  the^'r  ancient 
and  rightful  inheritance  in  the  hands  of  strangers,  and 
that,  if  these  latter  would  consent  to  live  under  their 

"  Conde,  Dominacion  de  los  Arabes,  torn.  iii.  cap.  40. — Mariana, 
Hist,  de  Espana,  toni.  ii.  lib.  25,  cap.  12. — Pulgar,  Reyes  Catolicos, 
cap.  III. 


SIEGE    OE  BAZA. 


59 


rule  as  true  and  loyal  subjects,  they  should  experience 
the  same  paternal  indulgence  which  had  been  shown 
to  their  brethren.  With  this  answer  the  reverend 
emissaries  returned  to  the  Holy  Land,  accompanied  by 
substantial  marks  of  the  royal  favor,  in  a  yearly  pension 
of  one  thousand  ducats,  which  the  queen  settled  in 
perpetuity  on  their  monastery,  together  with  a  richly- 
embroidered  veil,  the  work  of  her  own  fair  hands,  to 
be  suspended  over  the  Holy  Sepulchre.  The  sovereigns 
subsequently  desixxtched  the  learned  Peter  Martyr  as 
their  envoy  to  the  Moslem  court,  in  order  to  explain 
their  proceedings  more  at  length,  and  avert  any  dis- 
astrous consecjuences  from  the  Christian  residents. '^ 

\x\  the  mean  while,  the  siege  went  forward  with  spirit; 
skirmishes  and  single  rencontres  taking  place  every 
day  between  the  high-mettled  cavaliers  on  both  sides. 
These  chivalrous  combats,  however,  were  discouraged  by 
Ferdinand,  who  would  have  confined  his  operations  to 
a  strict  blockade,  and  avoided  the  unnecessary  effusion 
of  blood;  especially  as  the  advantage  was  most  com- 
monly on  the  side  of  the  enemy,  from  the  peculiar 
adaptation  of  their  tactics  to  ihis  desultory  warfare. 
Althoi;;;';  some  months  had  ela])sed,  the  besieged  re- 
jected with  scorn  every  summons  to  surrender;  relying 
on  their  own  resources,  and  still  more  on  the  tempestu- 
ous season  of  auti'mn,  now  fast  advancing,  which,  if  it 
did  not  break  up  the  encampment  at  once,  would  at 
least,  by  demolishing  the  roads,  cut  off  all  external 
communication. 

In  order  to  guard  against    tnese   impending   evils, 

'3  Pulgar,  Reyes  Catolicos,  cap.  112. — Ferreras,   Hist.  d'Espagne, 
luni.  viii.  p  86. 


6o 


PVAA'   OF  GJiANADA. 


Ferdinand  caused  more  than  a  thousand  houses,  or 
rather  huts,  to  be  erected,  with  walls  of  earth  or  clay, 
and  roofs  made  of  timber  and  tiles;  while  the  common 
soldiers  constructed  cabins  by  means  of  palisades  loosely 
thatched  witli  the  branches  of  trees.  The  whole  work 
was  accomplished  in  four  days;  and  the  inhabitants  of 
Baza  beheld  with  amazement  a  city  of  solid  edifices, 
vith  all  its  streets  and  squares  in  regular  order,  spring- 
ing as  it  were  by  magic  out  of  the  ground,  which  had 
hefore  been  covered  with  the  light  and  airy  pavilions 
of  the  camp.  The  new  city  was  well  supplied,  owing 
u>  the  providence  of  the  queen,  not  merely  with  the 
necessaries  but  the  luxuries  of  life.  Traders  flocked 
*,here  as  to  a  fair,  from  Aragon,  Valencia,  Catalonia, 
and  even  Sicily,  freighted  with  c  jstly  merchandise,  and 
with  jewelry  and  other  articles  of  luxury;  such  as,  in 
the  indignant  lament  of  an  old  chronicler,  "too  often 
corrupt  the  souls  of  the  soldiery,  and  bring  waste  and 
dissipation  into  a  camp," 

That  this  was  not  the  result,  however,  in  the  present 
instance,  is  attested  by  more  than  one  historian. 
Among  others,  Peter  Martyr,  the  Italian  scholar  before 
mentioned,  who  was  present  at  this  .siege,  dwells  with 
astonishment  on  the  severe  decorum  and  military  dis- 
cipline wMich  everywhere  obtained  among  this  motley 
congregation  of  soldiers.  ' '  Who  would  have  believed, ' ' 
says  he,  "that  the  Gaiician,  the  fierce  Asturian,  and 
the  rude  inhabitant  of  the  Pyrenees,  men  accustomed  to 
deeds  of  atrocious  violence,  and  to  brawl  and  battle  on 
the  lightest  occasions  at  home,  should  mingle  amicably, 
not  only  with  one  another,  but  with  the  Tolcdans,  tlie 
La-Manchans,  and  the  wily  and  jealous  Aiidalusians ;  all 


SIEGE   OF  BAZA. 


di 


living  together  in  harmonious  subordination  to  au- 
thority, like  members  of  one  family,  speaking  one 
tongue,  and  nurtured  under  a  common  discipline;  so 
that  tlie  camp  seemed  like  a  community  modelled  on 
the  principle  of  Plato's  republic!"  In  another  part 
of  this  letter,  which  was  addressed  to  a  Milanese  prel- 
ate, he  panegyrizes  the  camp  hospital  of  the  queen, 
then  a  novelty  in  war;  which,  he  says,  "is  so  profusely 
supplied  with  medical  attendants,  apparatus,  and  what- 
ever may  contribute  to  the  restoration  or  solace  of  the 
sick,  that  it  is  scarcely  surpassed  in  these  respects  by 
the  magnificent  establishments  of  Milan."'* 

During  the  five  months  which  the  siege  had  now 
lasted,  the  weather  had  proved  uncommonly  propitious 
to  the  Spaniards,  being  for  the  most  part  of  a  bland  and 
equal  temperature,  while  the  sultry  heats  of  midsummer 
were  mitigated  by  cool  and  moderate  showers.  As  the 
autumnal  season  advanced,  however,  the  clouds  began 
to  settle  heavily  around  the  mountains ;  and  at  length 
one  of  those  storms  predicted  by  the  people  of  Baza 
burst  forth  with  incredible  fury,  pouring  a  volume  of 
waters  down  the  rocky  sides  of  the  sierra,  which, 
mingling  with  those  of  the  vega,  inundated  the  camp 


^  Bernaldez,  Reyes  Catolicos,  MS. — Peter  Miinyr,  Opus  Epist.,  lib. 
2,  epist.  73,  80. — Pulgar,  Reyes  Catolicos,  cap.  113, 114, 117. — Garibay, 
Compendio,  torn.  ii.  p.  667. — Bleda,  Coionica,  p.  64. — The  plague, 
which  fell  heavily  this  year  on  some  parts  of  Andalusia,  does  not 
appear  to  have  attacked  the  camp,  which  Bleda  imputes  to  the  healing 
influence  of  the  Spanish  sovereigns,  "whose  good  faith,  religion,  and 
virtue  banished  the  contagion  from  their  army,  where  it  must  otherwise 
have  prevailed."  Personal  comforts  and  cleanliness  of  the  soldiers, 
thougli  not  (juite  so  miraculous  a  cause,  may  be  considered  perhaps 
full  as  efficacious. 


6a 


WAR   OF  GRAMADA. 


of  the  besiegers,  and  swept  away  most  of  the  frail  edi- 
fices constructed  for  the  use  of  the  common  soldiery. 
A  still  greater  calamity  befell  them  in  the  dilapidation 
of  the  roads,  which,  broken  up  or  worn  into  deep  gullies 
by  the  force  of  the  waters,  were  rendered  perfectly  im- 
passable. All  communication  with  Jaen  was  of  course 
suspended,  and  a  temporary  interruption  of  the  convoys 
filled  the  camp  with  consternation.  This  disaster,  how- 
ever, was  speedily  repaired  by  the  queen,  who,  with  an 
energy  always  equal  to  the  occasion,  caused  six  thousand 
pioneers  to  be  at  once  employed  in  reconstructing  the 
roads:  the  rivers  were  bridged  over,  causeways  new 
laid,  and  two  separate  passes  opened  through  the  moun- 
tains, by  which  the  convoys  might  visit  the  camp  and 
return  without  interrupting  each  other.  At  the  same 
time,  the  queen  bought  up  immense  quantities  of  grain 
in  all  parts  of  Andalusia,  which  she  caused  to  be  ground 
in  her  own  mills ;  and  when  the  roads,  which  extended 
more  than  seven  leagues  in  length,  were  completed, 
fourteen  thousand  mules  might  be  seen  daily  traversing 
the  sierra,  laden  with  supplies,  which  from  that  time 
forward  were  poured  abundantly,  and  with  the  most 
perfect  regularity,  into  the  camp.'s 

Isabella's  next  care  was  to  assemble  new  levies  of 
troops,  to  relieve  or  reinforce  those  now  in  the  camp  ; 
and  the  alacrity  with  which  all  orders  of  men  from 
every  quarter  of  the  kingdom  answered  her  summons 
is  worthy  of  remark.  But  hei  chief  solicitude  was  to 
devise  expedients  for  meeting  the  enormous  expendi- 
tures incurred  by  the  protracted  operations  of  the  year. 

'S  Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  lib.  2,  epist.  73. — Pulgar,  Reyes  Cat6- 
licos,  cap.  1 16. 


SIEGE   OF  BAZA, 


63 


For  this  purpose,  she  had  recourse  to  loans  from  indi- 
viduals and  religious  corporations,  which  were  obtained 
without  much  difficulty,  from  the  general  confidence 
in  her  good  faith.  As  the  sum  thus  raised,  although 
exceedingly  large  for  that  period,  proved  inadequate 
to  the  expenses,  further  supplies  were  obtained  from 
wealthy  individuals,  whose  loans  were  secured  by  mort- 
gage of  the  royal  demesne;  and,  as  a  deficiency  still 
remained  in  the  treasury,  the  queen,  as  a  last  resource, 
pawned  the  crown  jewels  and  her  own  personal  orna- 
ments to  the  merchants  of  Barcelona  and  Valencia,  for 
such  sums  as  they  were  willing  to  advance  on  them.'* 
Such  were  the  efforts  made  by  this  high-spirited  woman 
for  the  furtherance  of  her  patriotic  enterprise.  The  ex- 
traordinary results  which  she  was  enabled  to  effect  are 
to  be  ascribed  less  to  the  authority  of  her  station  than 
to  that  perfect  confidence  in  her  wisdom  and  virtue 
with  which  she  had  inspired  the  whole  nation,  and 
which  secured  their  earnest  co-operation  in  all  her 
undertakings.  The  empire  which  she  thus  exercised, 
indeed,  was  far  more  extended  than  any  station  how- 
ever exalted,  or  any  authority  however  despotic,  can 
confer;  for  it  was  over  the  hearts  of  her  people. 


»*  Pulgar,  Reyes  Catolicos,  cap.  118. — Archivo  de  Simancas,  in  Mem. 
de  la  Acad,  de  Hist.,  torn.  vi.  p.  311. — The  city  of  Valencia  lent  35,000 
florins  on  the  crown  and  20,000  on  a  collar  of  rubies.  They  were  not 
wholly  redeemed  till  1495.  Seflor  Clemencin  has  given  a  catalogue 
of  the  royal  jewels  (see  Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de  Hist.,  torn.  vi.  Ilustracion 
6),  which  appear  to  have  been  extremely  rich  and  numerous,  for  a 
period  anterior  to  the  discovery  of  those  countries  whose  mines  have 
since  furnished  Europe  with  its  bijouterie.  Isabella,  however,  set  so 
little  value  on  them  that  she  divested  l»erself  of  most  of  them  iu  favoi 
of  her  daughrcTs. 


64 


PFA/i   OF  GRANADA. 


\ 


•       ^1' 


Notwithstanding  the  vigor  with  which  the  siege  was 
pressed,  Baza  made  no  demonstration  of  submission. 
The  garrison  was  indeed  greatly  reduced  in  number  ; 
the  ammunition  was  nearly  expended;  yet  there  still 
remained  abundant  supplies  of  provisions  in  the  town, 
and  no  signs  of  despondency  appeared  among  the 
people.  Even  the  women  of  the  place,  with  a  spirit 
emulating  that  of  the  dames  of  ancient  Carthage,  freely 
gave  up  their  jewels,  bracelets,  necklaces,  and  other 
personal  ornament:,,  of  whi(  n  the  Moorish  ladies  were 
exceedingly  fond,  in  order  to  defray  the  charges  of  the 
mercenaries. 

The  camp  of  the  besiegers,  in  the  mean  while,  was 
also  greatly  wasted  both  by  sickness  and  the  sword. 
Many,  desponding  under  perils  and  fatigues  which 
seemed  to  have  no  end,  would  even  at  this  late  hour 
have  abandoned  the  siege ;  and  they  earnestly  solicited 
the  queen's  appearance  in  the  camp,  in  the  hope  that 
she  would  hersclr  countenance  this  measure  on  witness- 
ing their  sufferings.  Others,  and  by  far  the  larger  part, 
anxiously  desired  the  queen's  visit  as  likely  to  quicken 
the  operations  of  the  siege  and  bring  it  to  a  favorable 
issue.  There  seemed  to  be  a  virtue  in  her  presence, 
which,  on  some  account  or  other,  made  it  earnestly 
desired  by  all. 

Isabella  yielded  to  the  general  -wish,  and  on  the 
7th  of  November  arrived  at  the  camp,  attended  by  the 
infanta  Isabella,  the  cardinal  of  Spain,  her  friend  the 
marchioness  of  Moya,  and  other  ladies  of  the  royal 
household.  The  inhabitants  of  Baza,  says  Bernaldez, 
lined  the  battlements  and  housetops,  to  gaze  at  the  glit- 
tering cavalcade  as  it  emerged  from  the  depths  of  the 


SIEGE   OF  BAZA. 


6S 


mountains,  amidst  flaunting  banners  and  strains  of  tnar- 
tial  music ;  while  the  Spanish  cavaliers  thronged  forth 
in  a  body  from  the  camp  to  receive  their  beloved  mis- 
tress, and  gave  her  the  most  animated  welcome.  "She 
came,"  says  Martyr,  "surrounded  hyachoirof  nymphs, 
as  if  to  celebrate  the  nuptials  of  lier  child;  and  her 
presence  seemed  at  once  to  gladden  and  reanimate 
our  spirits,  drooping  under  long  vig  langers,  and 
fatigue."  Another  writer,  also  pres^  ,  remarks  thiit, 
from  the  moment  of  her  appearance,  a  change  seemed 
to  come  over  the  scene  :  no  more  of  the  cruel  skirmishes 
which  had  before  occurred  every  day ;  no  report  of 
artillery,  or  clashing  of  arms,  or  any  of  the  rude  sounds 
of  war,  was  to  be  heard,  but  all  seemed  disposed  to  re- 
conciliation and  peace.*' 

The  Moors  probably  interpreted  Isabella's  visit  into 
an  assurance  that  the  Christian  army  would  never  rise 
from  before  the  place  until  its  surrender.  Whatever 
hopes  they  had  once  entertained  of  wearying  out  the 
besiegers  were  therefore  now  dispelled.  Accordingly, 
a  few  days  after  the  queen's  arrival,  we  find  them  pro- 
posing a  parley  for  arranging  terms  of  capitulation. 

On  the  third  day  after  her  arrival,  Isabella  reviewed 
her  army,  stretched  out  in  order  of  battle  along  the 
slope  of  the  western  hills ;  after  which  she  proceeded 
to  reconnoitre  the  beleaguered  city,  accompanied  by 
the  king  and  the  cardinal  of  Spain,  together  with  a 
brilliant  escort  of  the  Spanish  chivalry.  On  the  same 
day,  a  conference  was  opened  with  the  enemy  through 

V  Bemaldez,  Reyes  Catolicos,  MS.,  cap.  92. — Pulgar,  Reyes  Cat61i- 
cos,  cap.  120,121. — Ferreras,  Hist.  d'Espagne,  torn.  viii.  p.  93. — Petei 
Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  lib.  3,  epist.  80. 
Vol.  II.— 5 


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66 


WA/l   OF  GRANADA. 


the  romendador  of  Leon,  and  an  armistice  arranged, 
to  continue  until  the  old  monarch,  El  Tjd%2X^  who  then 
lay  at  Guadix,  could  be  informed  of  the  real  condi- 
tion of  the  besieged,  and  his  instructions  be  received, 
determining  the  course  to  be  adopted. 

The  alcayde  of  Baza  represented  to  his  master  the 
low  state  to  which  the  garrison  was  reduced  by  the  loss 
of  lives  and  the  failure  of  ammunition.  Still,  he  ex- 
pressed such  confidence  in  the  spirit  of  his  people  that 
he  undertook  to  make  good  his  defence  some  time 
longer,  provided  any  reasonable  expectation  of  succor 
could  be  afforded ;  otherwise  it  would  be  a  mere  waste 
of  life,  and  must  deprive  him  of  such  vantage-ground 
as  he  now  possessed  for  enforcing  an  honorable  capitu- 
lation. The  Moslem  prince  acquiesced  in  the  reason- 
ableness of  these  representations.  He  paid  a  just 
tribute  to  the  loyalty  of  his  brave  kinsman  Cidi  Yahye, 
and  the  gallantry  of  his  defence,  but,  confessing  at  the 
same  time  his  own  inability  to  relieve  him,  authorized 
him  to  negotiate  the  best  terms  of  surrender  which  he 
could,  for  himself  and  garrison.*" 

A  mutual  desire  of  terminating  the  protracted  hos- 
tilities infused  a  spirit  of  moderation  into  both  parties, 
which  greatly  facilitated  the  adjustment  of  the  articles. 
Ferdinand  showed  none  of  the  arrogant  bearing  which 
marked  his  conduct  towards  the  unfortunate  people  of 
Malaga,  whether  from  a  conviction  of  its  impolicy,  or, 
as  is  more  probable,  because  the  city  of  Baza  was  itself 
in  a  condition  to  assume  a  more  imposing  attitude. 

i8  Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  lib.  3,  epist.  80, — Conde,  Dominacion 
de  los  Arabes,  torn.  iii.  p.  243.^Carbajal,  Anales,  MS.,  afto  x^^,-^ 
CarUonne,  Hist,  de  I'Afrique  et  de  I'Espagne,  torn.  iii.  p.  305. 


STEGE   OF  BAZA. 


67 


The  principal  stipulations  of  the  treaty  were,  that  the 
foreign  mercenaries  employed  in  the  defence  of  the 
place  should  be  allowed  to  march  out  with  the  honors 
of  war ;  that  the  city  should  be  delivered  up  to  the 
Christians ;  but  that  the  natives  might  have  the  choice 
of  retiring  with  their  personal  effects  where  they  listed, 
or  of  occupying  the  suburbs  as  subjects  of  the  Cas- 
tilian  crown,  liable  only  to  the  same  tribute  which  they 
paid  to  their  Moslem  rulers,  and  secured  in  the  enjoy- 
ment of  their  property,  religion,  laws,  and  usages. *» 

On  the  fourth  day  of  December,  1489,  Ferdinand 
and  Isabella  took  possession  of  Baza,  at  the  head  of 
their  legions,  amid  the  ringing  of  bells,  the  peals  of 
artillery,  and  all  the  other  usual  accompaniments  of 
this  triumphant  ceremony ;  while  the  standard  of  the 
Cross,  floating  from  the  ancient  battlements  of  the  city, 
proclaimed  the  triumph  of  the  Christian  arms.  The 
brave  alcayde,  Cidi  Yahye,  experienced  a  reception 
from  the  sovereigns  very  different  from  that  of  the  bold 
defender  of  Malaga.  He  was  loaded  with  civilities 
and  presents ;  and  these  acts  of  courtesy  so  won  upon 
his  heart  that  he  expressed  a  willingness  to  enter  into 
their  service.  "Isabella's  compliments,"  says  the 
Arabian  historian,  dryly,  "were  repaid  in  more  sub- 
stantial coin."* 


19  Pulgar,  Reyes  Cat6Iicos,  cap.  124.  • 
Moriscos,  lib.  i,  cap.  16. 


■Mannol,  Rebelion  de  lot 


•  [The  character  and  proceedings  of  Yahye,  or  Yahf  a  AInayar,  are  re- 
vealed in  thex  true  light  by  a  document  in  the  Archives  of  Simancas, 
bearing  date  Dec.  25,  1489,  in  which  Ferdinand  recites  and  confirms 
the  promises  contained  in  an  agpreement  made  in  his  name  by  Gutiene 
de  Cardenas,  with  the  Moorish  traitor  and  renegade,  previously  to  the 


68 


IVAX   OF  GRANADA. 


Cidi  Yahye  was  soon  prevailed  on  to  visit  his  roya' 
kinsman  £1  Zagal,  at  Guadix,  for  the  purpose  of  urging 
his  submission  to  the  Christian  sovereigns.  In  his  in- 
terview with  that  prince,  he  represented  the  fruitless- 
ness  of  any  attempt  to  withstand  the  accumulated  forces 
of  the  Spanish  monarchies;  that  he  would  only  see 
town  after  town  pared  away  from  his  territory,  until  no 
ground  was  left  for  him  to  stand  on  and  make  terms 
with  the  victor.  He  reminded  him  that  the  baleful 
horoscope  of  Abdallah  had  predicted  the  downfall  of 
Granada,  and  that  experience  had  abundantly  shown 
how  vain  it  was  to  struggle  against  the  tide  of  destiny. 
The  unfortunate  monarch  listened,  says  the  Arabian 
annalist,  without  so  much  as  moving  an  eyelid,  and. 


surrender  of  Baza.  In  return  for  his  alacrity  in  bringing  about  that 
event, — "  por  la  prisa  que  a  mi  instancia  e  por  me  servir  distes  d  la  en- 
trega  della," — and  in  view  of  other  services  rendered  or  to  be  ren- 
dered,— "  como  por  lo  mucho  y  bien  que  me  habels  servido  y  espero 
que  me  servir^is," — ^Yahia,  with  his  son  and  nephews,  was  to  be  re- 
ceived into  Ferdinand's  household,  maintained  and  treated  like  "  the 
great  caballeros,"  and  secured  in  the  possession  of  his  vineyards  and 
castles,  with  immunity  from  taxes,  and  the  right  to  visit  any  town  with 
an  armed  escort  of  twenty  men.  His  reward  for  obtaining  the  sur- 
render of  Guadix  and  bringing  over  his  brother-in-law  the  king  to  the 
service  of  the  Spanish  sovereign  was  to  be  10,000  reales.  As  he  had 
professed  his  desire  to  become  a  Christian,  he  was  to  receive  baptism 
in  Ferdinand's  chamber,  in  order  that  his  conversion  might  not  be 
known  to  his  countrymen  till  after  the  surrender  of  Guadix,  as  secrecy 
on  this  point  would  enable  him  to  render  more  effectual  service  during 
the  remainder  of  the  conquest  and  would  also  prevent  the  desertion  of 
his  followers  to  swell  the  ranks  of  the  enemy.  "  Lo  habeis  de  tenet 
en  secreto  por  mas  servir  d  Dios  y  d  mi  en  lo  restante  de  la  conquista, 
en  que  desta  manera  sereis  mas  parte,  e  porque  vuestra  gente  de 
guerra  no  os  deje  6  se  vaya  con  nuestros  enemigos."  Col.  de  Doc* 
in^d.  para  la  Hist,  de  E^paiia,  torn.  viii. — ED.] 


SIEGE   OF  BAZA. 


M 


after  a  long  and  deep  meditation,  replied,  with  the 
resignation  characteristic  of  the  Moslems,  "What 
Allah  wills,  he  brings  to  pass  in  his  own  way.  Had  he 
not  decreed  the  fall  of  Granada,  this  good  sword  might 
have  saved  it;  but  his  will  be  done!"  It  was  then 
arranged  that  the  principal  cities  of  Almeria,  Guadix, 
and  their  dependencies,  constituting  the  domain  of 
El  Zagal,  should  be  formally  surrendered  by  that  prince 
to  Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  who  should  instantly  pro- 
ceed at  the  head  of  their  army  to  take  possession  of 
them." 

On  the  seventh  day  of  December,  therefore,  the 
Spanish  sovereigns,  without  allowing  themselves  or 
their  jaded  troops  any  time  for  repose,  marched  out 
of  the  gates  of  Baza,  King  Ferdinand  occupying  the 
centre,  and  the  queen  the  rear  of  the  army.  Their 
route  lay  across  the  most  savage  district  of  the  long 
sierra  which  stretches  towards  Almeria,  leading  through 
many  a  narrow  pass  which  a  handful  of  resolute  Moors, 
says  an  eye-witness,  might  have  made  good  against  the 
whole  Christian  army,  over  mountains  whose  peaks 
were  lost  in  clouds,  and  valleys  whose  depths  were 
never  warmed  by  the  sun.  The  winds  were  exceedingly 
bleak,  and  the  weather  inclement ;  so  that  men,  as  well 
as  horses,  exhausted  by  the  fatigues  of  previous  service, 
were  benumbed  by  the  intense  cold,  and  many  of  them 
frozen  to  death.  Many  more,  losing  their  way  in  the 
intricacies  of  the  sierra,  would  have  experienced  the 
same  miserable  fate,  had  it  not  been  for  the  marquis 

«>  Conde,  Dominacion  de  los  Arabes,  torn.  iii.  cap.  40. — Bleda, 
Coronica,  p.  612. — Bernaldez,  Reyes  Cat61icos,  MS.,  cap.  92. — 
Mannol,  Rcbclion  dc  los  Moriscos,  lib.  i,  cap.  16. 


70 


fVA/!  OF  CHANADA. 


of  Cadiz,  whose  tent  was  pitched  on  one  of  the 
loftiest  hills,  and  who  caused  beacon-fires  to  be  lighted 
around  it,  in  order  to  guide  the  stragglers  back  to  their 
quarters. 

At  no  great  distance  from  Almeria,  Ferdinand  was 
met,  conformably  to  the  previous  arrangement,  by  El 
Zagal,  escorted  by  a  numerous  body  of  Moslem  cava- 
liers. Ferdinand  commanded  his  nobles  to  ride  for- 
ward and  receive  the  Moorish  prince.  '*  His  appear- 
ance," says  Martyr,  who  was  in  the  royal  retinue, 
**  touched  my  soul  with  compassion  j  for,  although  a 
lawless  barbarian,  he  was  a  king,  and  had  given  signal 
proofs  of  heroism."  El  Zagal,  without  waiting  to  re- 
ceive the  courtesies  of  the  Spanish  nobles,  threw  him- 
self from  his  horse,  and  advanced  towards  Ferdinand 
with  the  design  of  kissing  his  hand ;  but  the  latter, 
rebuking  his  followers  for  their  "  rusticity,"  in  allowing 
such  an  act  of  humiliation  in  the  unfortunate  monarch, 
prevailed  on  him  to  remount,  and  then  rode  by  his  side 
towards  Almeria." 

1  his  city  was  one  of  the  most  precious  jewels  in  the 
diadem  of  Granada.  It  had  amassed  great  wealth  by 
its  extensive  commerce  with  Syria,  Egypt,  and  Africa ; 
and  its  corsairs  had  for  ages  been  the  terror  of  the 
Catalan  and  Pisan  marine.  It  might  have  stood  a  siege 
as  long  as  that  of  Baza,  but  it  was  now  surrendered 
without  a  blow,  on  conditions  similar  to  those  granted 
to  the  former  city.  After  allowing  some  days  for  the 
refreshment  of  their  wearied  forces  in  this  pleasant 

"  Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  lib.  3,  epist.  81. — Cardonne,  Hist,  de 
I'Afrique  et  de  I'Espagne,  torn.  iii.  p.  340. — Pulgar,  Reyes  Catolicos, 
loc.  cit. — Conde,  Dominacion  de  los  Arabes,  torn.  iii.  cap.  40. 


SIEGE   OF  BAZA. 


71 


region,  whieh,  sheltered  from  the  bleak  winds  of  the 
north  by  the  sierra  they  had  lately  traversed,  and  fanned 
by  the  gentle  breezes  of  the  Mediterranean,  is  compared 
by  Martyr  to  the  gardens  of  the  Hesperides,  the  sover- 
eigns established  a  strong  garrison  there,  under  the 
commander  of  Leon,  and  then,  striking  again  into  the 
recesses  of  the  mountains,  marched  on  Guadix,  which, 
after  some  opposition  on  the  part  of  the  populace, 
threw  open  its  gates  to  them.  The  surrender  of  these 
principal  cities  was  followed  by  that  of  all  the  subordi- 
nate dependencies  belonging  to  El  Zagal's  territory, 
comprehending  a  multitude  of  hamlets  scattered  along 
the  green  side  of  the  mountain-chain  that  stretched 
from  Granada  to  the  coast.  To  all  these  places  the 
same  liberal  terms,  in  regard  to  personal  rights  and 
property,  were  secured,  as  to  Baza.* 

As  an  equivalent  for  these  broad  domains,  the  Moor- 
ish chief  was  placed  in  possession  of  the  taha,  or  district, 
of  Andaraz,  the  vale  of  Alhaurin,  and  half  the  salt-pits 
of  Maleha,  together  with  a  considerable  revenue  in 
money.  He  was,  moreover,  to  receive  the  title  of  King 
of  Andaraz,  and  to  render  homage  for  his  estates  to  the 
crown  of  Castile. 

This  shadow  of  royalty  could  not  long  amuse  the 
mind  of  the  unfortunate  prince.  He  pined  away  amid 
the  scenes  of  his  ancient  empire ;  and,  after  experiencing 
some  insubordination  on  the  part  of  his  new  vassals,  he 

*  [The  terms  were  even  more  liberal  than  had  been  granted  to  Baza, 
since  the  inhabitants,  Jews  as  well  as  Moors,  were  not  only  to  retain 
their  own  religion  and  law,  but  to  remain  in  possession  of  their  homes, 
secure  from  plunder  or  molestation.  See  the  Capitulacion  (from  the 
Archives  of  Simancas),  dated  Feb.  ii,  1490,  in  the  Col.  de  Doc.  in^d. 
para  la  Hist,  de  Espafsa,  torn.  xi. — Ed.] 


7» 


fT/f^   OF  GRANADA. 


determined  to  relinquish  his  petty  principality  and 
withdraw  forever  from  his  native  land.  Having  re- 
ceived a  large  sum  of  money  as  an  indemnification  for 
the  entire  cession  of  his  territorial  rights  and  posses- 
sions to  the  Castilian  crown,  he  passed  over  to  Africa, 
where,  it  is  reported,  he  was  plundered  of  his  property 
by  the  barbarians,  and  condemned  to  starve  out  the 
remainder  of  his  days  in  miserable  indigence." 

The  suspicious  circumstances  attending  this  prince's 
accession  to  the  throne  throw  a  dark  cloud  over  his 
fame,  which  would  otherwise  seem,  at  least  so  far  as 
his  public  life  is  concerned,  to  be  unstained  by  any 
opprobrious  act.  He  possessed  such  energy,  talent, 
and  military  science  as,  had  he  been  fortunate  enough 
to  unite  the  Moorish  nation  under  him  by  an  undis- 
puted title,  might  have  postponed  the  fall  of  Granada 
for  many  years.  As  it  was,  these  very  talents,  by 
dividing  the  state  in  his  favor,  served  only  to  precipi- 
tate its  ruin. 

The  Spanish  sovereigns,  having  accomplished  the 

object  of  the  campaign,  after  stationing  part  of  their 

forces  on  such  points  as  would  secure  the  permanence 

of  their  conquests,  returned  with  the  remainder  to 

Jaen,  where  they  disbanded  the  army  on  the  4th  of 

January,  1490.     The  losses  sustained  by  the  troops, 

during  the  w'lole  period  of  their  prolonged  service, 

greatly  exceede  'i  those  of  any  former  year,  amounting 

to  not   less  than   twenty  thousand  men,  by  far  the 

»  El  Nubiense,  Descripcion  de  EspaSa,  p.  160,  nota, — Carbajal, 
Anales,  MS.,  afto  1488. — Cardonne,  Hist,  de  I'Afrique  et  de  I'Espagne, 
torn.  iii.  p.  304. — Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  lib.  3,  epist.  81. — Conde, 
Dominacion  de  los  Arabes,  torn.  iii.  pp.  245,  246. — Bemaldez,  Reyes 
Cat61icos,  MS.,  cap.  93. 


SIEGE   OF  BAZA. 


73 


larger  portion  of  whom  are  said  to  have  fallen  victimst 
to  diseases  incident  to  severe  and  long-continued  hard- 
ships and  exposure.  *> 

Thus  terminated  the  eighth  year  of  the  war  of 
Granada ;  a  year  more  glorious  to  the  Christian  arms, 
and  more  important  in  its  results,  than  any  of  the  pre- 
ceding. During  this  period,  an  army  of  eighty  thou- 
sand men  had  kept  the  field,  amid  all  the  inclemencies 
of  winter,  for  more  than  seven  months;  an  effort 
scarcely  paralleled  in  those  times,  when  both  the 
amount  of  levies  and  period  of  service  were  on  the 
limited  scale  adapted  to  the  exigencies  of  feudal  war- 
fare.** Supplies  for  this  immense  host,  notwithstanding 
the  severe  famine  of  the  preceding  year,  were  punc- 
tually furnished,  in  spite  of  every  embarrassment  pre- 
sented by  the  want  of  navigable  rivers,  and  the  inter- 
position of  a  precipitous  and  pathless  sierra. 

The  history  of  this  campaign  is,  indeed,  most  honor- 
able to  the  courage,  constancy,  and  thorough  discipline 
of  the  Spanish  soldier,  and  to  the  patriotism  and  general 
resources  of  the  nation ;  but  most  of  all  to  Isabella. 
She  it  was  who  fortified  the  timid  councils  of  the 
leaders,  after  the  disasters  of  the  garden,  and  encour- 
aged them  to  persevere  in  the  siege.  She  procured  all 
the  supplies,  constructed  the  roads,  took  charge  of  the 
sick,  and  furnished,  at  no  little  personal  sacrifice,  the 
immense  sums  demanded  for  carrying  on  the  war ;  and, 


•3  Zurita,  Anales,  torn.  iv.  fol.  360. — Abarca,  Reyes  de  Aragon,  torn. 
H.  fol.  308. 

*t  The  city  of  Seville  alone  niiuiitained  600  horse  and  8000  foot,  under 
the  count  of  Cifuentes,  for  the  space  of  eight  months  during  this  siege. 
See  Zufiiga,  Annales  de  Sevilla,  p.  404. 

M 


r 


74 


IVA/l   OF  GRANADA. 


when  at  last  the  hearts  of  the  soldiers  were  fainting 
under  long-protracted  sufferings,  she  appeared  among 
them,  like  some  celestial  visitant,  to  cheer  their  falter- 
ing spirits  and  inspire  them  with  her  own  energy.  The 
attachment  to  Isabella  seemed  to  be  a  pervading  prin- 
ciple, which  animated  the  whole  nation  by  one  common 
impulse,  impressing  a  unity  of  design  on  all  its  move- 
ments. This  attachment  was  imputable  to  her  sex  as 
well  as  character.  The  sympathy  and  tender  care  with 
which  she  regarded  her  people  naturally  raised  a  recip- 
rocal sentiment  in  their  bosoms.  But,  when  they  be- 
held her  directing  their  counsels,  sharing  their  fatigues 
and  dangers,  and  displaying  all  the  comprehensive  in- 
tellectual powers  of  the  other  sex,  they  looked  up  to 
her  as  to  some  superior  being,  with  feelings  far  more 
exalted  than  those  of  mere  loyalty.  The  chivalrous 
heart  of  the  Spaniard  did  homage  to  her,  as  to  his 
tutelar  saint ;  and  she  held  a  control  over  her  people 
such  as  no  man  could  have  acquired  in  any  age, — 
and  probably  no  woman,  in  an  age  and  country  less 
romantic. 


Pietro  Martire,  or,  as  he  is  called  in  English,  Peter  Martyr,  so  often 
quoted  in  the  present  chapter,  and  who  will  constitute  one  of  our  best 
authorities  during  the  remainder  of  the  History,  was  a  native  of  Arona 
(not  of  Anghiera,  as  commonly  supposed),  a  place  situated  on  the 
borders  of  Lago  Maggiore  in  Italy.  (Mazzuchelli,  Scrittori  d'ltalia 
(Brescia,  1753-63),  torn,  ii.,  voce  Anghiera.)  He  was  of  noble  Milanese 
extraction.  In  1477,  at  twenty-two  years  of  age,  he  was  sent  to  com- 
plete his  education  at  Rome,  where  he  continued  ten  years,  and  formed 
an  intimacy  with  the  most  distinguished  literary  characters  of  that  cul- 
tivated capital.  In  1487,  he  was  persuaded  by  the  Castilian  ambassador, 
the  count  of  Tendilla,  to  accompany  him  to  Spain,  where  he  was  re- 


SIEGE   OF  BAZA. 


n 


ceived  with  marked  distinction  by  the  queen,  who  would  have  at  once 
engaged  him  in  the  tuition  of  the  young  nobility  of  the  court ;  but, 
Martyr  having  expressed  a  preference  of  a  military  life,  she,  with  her 
usual  delicacy,  declined  to  press  him  on  the  point.  He  was  present, 
as  we  have  seen,  at  the  siege  of  Baza,  and  continued  with  the  army 
during  the  subsequent  campaigns  of  the  Moorish  war.  Many  passages 
of  his  correspondence,  at  this  period,  show  a  whimsical  mixture  of  self- 
complacency  with  a  consciousness  of  the  ludicrous  figure  which  he  made 
in  "  exchanging  the  Muses  for  Mars." 

At  the  close  of  the  war,  he  entered  the  ecclesiastical  profession,  for 
which  he  had  been  originally  destined,  and  was  persuaded  to  resume 
his  literary  vocation.  He  opened  his  school  at  Valladolid,  Saragossa, 
Barcelona,  Alcald  de  Henares,  and  other  places ;  and  it  was  thronged 
with  the  principal  young  nobility  from  all  parts  of  Spain,  who,  as  he 
boasts  in  one  of  his  letters,  drew  their  literary  nourishment  from  him : 
"  Suxerunt  mea  literalia  ul)era  Castellse  principes  fere  omnes."  His 
important  services  were  fully  estimated  by  the  queen,  and,  after  her 
death,  by  Ferdinand  and  Charles  V.,  and  he  was  recompensed  with 
high  ecclesiastical  preferment  as  well  as  civil  dignities.  He  died  about 
the  year  1525,  at  the  age  of  seventy,  and  his  remains  were  interred 
beneath  a  monument  in  the  cathedral  church  of  Granada,  of  which  he 
was  prior. 

Among  Martyr's  principal  works  is  a  treatise  "  De  Legatione  Baby- 
lonic&i"  being  an  account  of  a  visit  to  the  sultan  of  Egypt,  in  150X,  for 
the  purpose  of  deprecating  the  retaliation  with  which  he  had  menaced 
the  Christian  residents  in  Palestine  for  the  injuries  inflicted  on  the 
Spanish  Moslems.  Peter  Martyr  conducted  his  negotiation  with  such 
address  that  he  not  only  appeased  the  sultan's  resentment,  but  obtained 
several  important  immunities  for  his  Christian  subjects,  in  addition  to 
those  previously  enjoyed  by  them. 

He  also  wrote  an  account  of  the  discoveries  of  the  New  World,  entitled 
"  De  Rebus  Oceanicis  et  Novo  Orbe"  (Coloniae,  1574),  a  book  largely 
consulted  and  commended  by  subsequent  historians.  But  the  work 
of  principal  value  in  our  researches  is  his  "  Opus  Epistolarum,"  being 
a  collection  of  his  multifarious  correspondence  with  the  most  consider- 
able persons  of  his  time,  whether  in  political  or  literary  life.  The  letters 
are  in  Latin,  and  extend  from  the  year  1488  to  the  time  of  his  death. 
Although  not  conspicuous  for  elegance  of  diction,  they  are  most  valua- 
ble to  the  historian,  from  the  fidelity  and  general  accuracy  of  the  details, 
as  well  as  for  the  intelligent  criticism  in  which  they  abound,  for  all  which 


y« 


H^AH  OF  GHANADA. 


uncommon  fiuilities  were  afforded  by  the  writer's  intimacy  with  the 
leading  acton  and  the  most  recondite  sources  of  information  of  the 
period. 

This  high  character  is  fully  authoriied  by  the  Judgments  of  those  best 
qualified  to  pronounce  on  their  merits, — Martyr's  own  contemporaries. 
Among  these,  Dr.  Oalindec  de  Carbajal,  a  counsellor  of  King  Ferdi- 
nand and  constantly  employed  in  the  highest  concerns  of  stat«i  com- 
mends these  epistles  as  "  the  work  of  a  learned  and  upright  man,  well 
calculated  to  throw  light  on  the  transactions  of  the  period."  (Analor, 
MS.,  pr61ogo.)  Alvaro  Gomes,  another  contemporary  who  survived 
Martyr,  in  the  Life  of  Ximenes,  which  he  was  selected  to  write  by  the 
University  of  AlcalA,  declares  that  "  Martyr's  Letters  abundantly  com- 
pensate by  their  fidelity  for  the  unpolished  style  in  which  they  are 
written."  (De  Rebus  gestis,  fol.  6.)  And  John  de  Vergara,  a  name 
of  the  highest  celebrity  in  the  literary  annals  of  the  period,  expresses 
himself  in  the  following  emphatic  terms :  "  I  know  no  record  of  the 
time  more  accurate  and  valuable.  I  myself  have  often  witnessed  the 
promptness  with  which  he  put  down  things  the  moment  they  occurred. 
I  have  sometimes  seen  him  write  one  or  two  letters  while  they  were 
setting  the  table ;  for,  as  he  did  not  pay  much  attention  to  style  and 
mere  finish  of  expression,  his  composition  required  but  little  time,  and 
experienced  no  interruption  from  his  ordinary  avocations."  (See  his 
letter  to  Florian  de  Ocampo,  apud  Quintanilla  y  Mendoza,  Archetypo 
de  Virtudes,  Espejo  de  Prelados,  el  Venerable  Padre  y  Siervo  de  Dios, 
F.  Francisco  Ximenez  de  Cisneros  (Palermo,  1653),  Archivo,  p.  4.) 
This  account  of  the  precipitate  manner  in  which  the  epistles  were  com- 
posed may  help  to  explain  the  cause  of  the  occasional  inconsistencies 
and  anachronisms  that  are  to  be  found  in  them,  and  which  their  author, 
had  he  been  more  patient  of  the  labor  of  revision,  would  doubtless  have 
corrected.  But  he  seems  to  have  had  little  relish  for  this,  even  in  his 
more  elaborate  works,  composed  with  a  view  to  publication.  (See  his 
own  honest  confessions  in  his  book  "  De  Rebus  Oceanicis,"  dec.  8,  cap. 
8,  9.)  After  all,  the  errors,  such  as  they  are,  in  his  Epistles,  may  prob- 
ably be  chiefly  charged  on  the  publisher.  The  first  edition  appeared 
at  Alcald  de  Henares,  in  1530,  about  four  years  after  the  author's  death. 
It  has  now  become  exceedingly  rare.  The  second  and  last,  being  the 
one  used  in  the  present  History,  came  out  in  a  more  beautiful  form 
from  the  Elzevir  press,  Amsterdam,  in  1670,  folio.  Of  this  also  but  a 
small  number  of  copies  were  struck  off.  The  learned  editor  takes  much 
credit  to  himself  for  having  purified  the  work  from  many  errors,  which 


SIEGE   or  BAZA. 


77 


hod  flowed  from  the  heedlessness  of  his  predecessor.  It  will  not  be 
diflicult  to  detect  several  yet  remaining, — such,  for  example,  as  a 
memorable  letter  on  the  luis  vtturta  (No.  68),  obviously  misplaced, 
even  according  to  iu  own  date ;  and  that  numbered  i68,  in  which  two 
letters  are  evidently  blen''Jed  into  one.  But  it  is  unnecessary  to  mul- 
tiply examples. — It  is  very  desirable  that  an  edition  of  this  valuable 
correspondence  should  be  published,  under  the  care  of  some  one  quali- 
fied to  illustrate  it  by  his  intimacy  with  the  history  of  the  period,  as  well 
as  to  correct  the  various  inaccuracies  which  have  crept  into  it.  whether 
through  the  carelessness  of  the  author  or  of  his  editors. 

I  have  been  led  into  this  length  of  remark  by  some  strictures  which 
met  my  eye  in  the  recent  work  of  Mr.  Hallam.  who  intimates  his  belief 
that  the  Epistles  of  Martyr,  instead  of  being  written  at  their  respective 
dates,  were  produced  by  him  at  some  later  period  ( Introduction  to  the 
Literature  of  Europe  (London,  1837),  vol.  i.  pp.  439-441);  a  conclu- 
sion which  I  suspect  this  acute  and  candid  critic  would  have  been  slow 
to  adopt,  had  he  perused  the  correspondence  in  connection  with  the 
history  of  the  times,  or  weighed  the  unqualified  testimony  borne  by 
contemporaries  to  its  minute  accuracy. 


w 

m 


CHAPTER    XV. 

WAR  OF  GRANADA. — SIEGE  AND  SURRENDER  OF  THE  CITV 

OF  GRANADA. 

1490-1492. 

The  Infant',  Isabella  affianced  to  the  Prince  of  Portugal. — Isabella  de- 
poses Judges  at  Valladolid. — Encampment  before  Granada. — The 
Queen  surveys  the  City. — Moslem  and  Christian  Chivalry. — Confla- 
gration of  the  Christian  Camp. — Erection  of  Santa  Fe. — Capitula- 
tion of  Granada. — Results  of  the  War. — Its  moral  Influence. — Its 
military  Influence. — Fate  of  the  Moors. — Death  and  Character  of 
the  Marquis  of  Cadiz. 

In  the  spring  of  1490,  ambassadors  arrived  from 
Lisbon  for  the  purpose  of  carrying  into  effect  the  treaty 
of  marriage  which  had  been  arranged  between  Alonso, 
heir  of  the  Portuguese  monarchy,  and  Isabella,  infanta 
of  Castile.  An  alliance  with  this  kingdom,  which  from 
its  contiguity  possessed  such  ready  means  of  annoyance 
to  Castile,  and  which  had  shown  such  willingness  to 
employ  them  in  enforcing  the  pretensions  of  Joanna 
Beltraneja,  was  an  object  of  importance  to  Ferdinand 
and  Isabella.  No  inferior  consideration  could  have 
reconciled  the  queen  to  a  separation  from  this  beloved 
daughter,  her  eldest  child,  whose  gentle  and  uncom- 
monly amiable  disposition  seems  to  have  endeared  her 
beyond  their  other  children  to  her  parents. 

The  ceremony  of  the  affiancing  took  place  at  Seville, 
in  the  month  of  April,  Don  Fernando  de  Silveira  ap- 
(78) 


SUKRENDEK   OF  THE   CAPITAL. 


79 


pearing  as  the  representative  of  the  prince  of  Portugal  j 
and  it  was  followed  by  a  succession  of  splendid  fetes 
and  tourneys.  Lists  were  enclosed,  at  some  distance 
from  the  city,  on  the  shores  of  the  Guadalquivir,  and 
surrounded  with  galleries  hung  with  silk  and  cloth  of 
gold,  and  protected  from  the  noontide  heat  by  cano- 
pies or  awnings,  richly  embroidered  with  the  armorial 
bearings  of  the  ancient  houses  of  Castile  The  specta- 
cle was  graced  by  all  the  rank  and  beauty  of  the  court, 
with  the  infanta  Isabella  in  the  midst,  attended  by  sev- 
enty noble  ladies,  and  a  hundred  pages  of  the  royal 
household.  The  cavaliers  of  Spain,  young  and  old, 
thronged  to  the  tournament,  as  eager  to  win  laurels  on 
the  mimic  theatre  of  war,  in  the  presence  of  so  brilliant 
an  assemblage,  as  they  had  shown  themselves  in  the 
sterner  contests  with  the  Moors.  King  Ferdinand,  who 
broke  several  lances  on  the  occasion,  was  among  the 
most  distinguished  of  the  combatants  for  personal  dex- 
terity and  horsemanship.  The  martial  exercises  of  the 
day  were  relieved  by  the  more  effeminate  recreations 
of  dancing  and  music  in  the  evening ;  and  every  one 
seemed  willing  to  welcome  the  season  of  hilarity,  after 
the  long-protracted  fatigues  of  war.* 

In  the  following  autumn,  the  infanta  was  escorted 
into  Portugal  by  the  cardinal  of  Spain,  the  grand 
master  of  St.  James,  and  a  numerous  and  magnificent 
retinue.  Her  dowry  exceeded  that  usually  assigned  to 
the  infantas  of  Castile,  by  five  hundred  marks  of  gold 

»  Carbajal,  Anales,  MS,,  afio  1490.— Bemaldez,  Reyes  Cat61icos, 
MS.,  cap.  95.— Zuftiga,  Annales  de  Sevilla.  pp.  404,  405.— Pulgar, 
Reyes  Cat61icos,  part.  3,  cap.  127. — La  Cl*de,  Hist,  de  Portugal,  torn, 
iv.  p.  19. — Faria  y  Sousa,  Europa  Portuguesa,  torn.  ii.  p.  453. 


r 


80 


HTA/d   01'   GRANADA. 


and  a  thousand  of  silver ;  and  her  wardrobe  was  esti- 
mated at  one  hundred  and  twenty  thousand  gold  florins. 
The  contemporary  chroniclers  dwell  with  much  com- 
placency on  these  evidences  of  the  stateliness  and 
splendor  of  the  Castilian  court.  Unfortunately,  these 
fair  auspices  were  destined  to  be  clouded  too  soon  by 
the  death  of  the  prince,  her  husband." 

No  sooner  had  the  campaign  of  the  preceding  year 
been  brought  to  a  close  than  Ferdinand  and  Isabella 
sent  an  embassy  to  the  king  of  Granada,  requiring  a 
surrender  of  his  capital,  conformably  to  his  stipulations 
at  Loja,  which  guaranteed  this  on  the  capitulation  of 
Baza,  Almeria,  and  Guadix.  That  time  had  now  ar- 
rived. King  Abdallah,  however,  excused  himself  from 
obeying  the  summons  of  the  Spanish  sovereign,  reply- 
ing that  he  was  no  longer  his  own  master,  and  that, 
although  he  had  the  strongest  desire  to  keep  his  engage- 
ments, he  was  prevented  by  the  inhabitants  of  the  city, 
now  swollen  much  beyond  its  natural  population,  who 
resolutely  insisted  on  its  defence.' 

It  is  not  probable  that  the  Moorish  king  did  any 
great  violence  to   his  feelings  in   this   evasion  of  a 

•  Faria  y  Soiisa,  Europa  Portuguesa,  torn.  ii.  pp.  452-456. — Florez, 
Reynas  Cathdlicas,  p.  845. — Pulgar,  Reyes  Cat61icos,  cap.  129.— 
Oviedo,  Quincuagenas,  MS.,  bat.  i,  quinc.  a,  dial.  3. 

3  Conde,  Dotninacion  de  los  Arabes,  torn.  iii.  cap.  41. — Bernaldez, 
Reyes  Cat61icos,  MS.,  cap.  90. — Neither  the  Arabic  nor  Castilian  au- 
thorities impeach  the  justice  of  the  summons  made  by  the  Spanish 
sovereigns.  I  do  not,  however,  find  any  other  foundation  for  the 
obligation  imputed  to  Abdallah  in  them  than  that  monarch's  agreement 
during  his  captivity  at  Loja,  in  i486,  to  surrender  his  capital  in  exchange 
for  Guadix,  provided  the  latter  should  be  conquered  within  six  months. 
Pulgar,  Reyes  Cat61icos,  p.  275. — Garibay,  Compendio,  torn.  iv.  p. 
418. 


SURRENDER   OF  THE  CAPITAL. 


8i 


promise  extorted  from  him  in  captivity.  At  least  it 
would  seem  so  from  the  hostile  movements  which 
immediately  succeeded.  The  people  of  Granada  re- 
sumed all  at  once  their  ancient  activity,  foraying  into 
the  Christian  territories,  surprising  Alhendin  and  some 
other  places  of  less  importance,  and  stirring  up  the 
spirit  of  revolt  in  Guadix  and  other  conquered  cities. 
Granada,  which  had  slept  through  the  heat  of  the 
struggle,  seemed  to  revive  at  the  very  moment  when 
exertion  became  hopeless. 

Ferdinand  was  not  slow  in  retaliating  these  acts  of 
aggression.  In  the  spring  of  1 490,  he  marched  with  a 
strong  force  into  the  cultivated  plain  of  Granada, 
sweeping  off,  as  usual,  the  crops  and  cattle,  and  rolling 
the  tide  of  devastation  up  to  the  very  walls  of  the  city. 
In  this  campaign  he  conferred  the  honor  of  knighthood 
on  his  son.  Prince  John,  then  only  twelve  years  of  age, 
whom  he  had  brought  with  him,  after  the  ancient  usage 
of  the  Castilian  nobles,  of  training  up  their  children 
from  very  tender  years  in  the  Moorish  wars.  The 
cerfemony  was  performed  on  the  banks  of  the  grand 
canal,  under  the  battlements  almost  of  the  beleaguered 
city.  The  dukes  of  Cadiz  and  Medina  Sidonia  were 
Prince  John's  sponsors;  and,  after  the  completion  of 
the  ceremony,  the  new  knight  conferred  the  honors  of 
chivalry  in  like  manner  on  several  of  his  young  com- 
panions-in-arms.* 

In  the  following  autumn,  Ferdinand  repeated  his 
ravages  in  the  vega,  and,  at  the  same  time  appearing 

4  L.  Marineo,  Cosas  memorablcs,  fol.  176. — Pulgar,  Reyes  Cat61icos, 
cap.   130. — Zurita,  Anales,  torn.  iv.  cap.  85. — Cardonne,   Hist,  de 
I'Afrique  et  dc  I'Espagne,  torn.  iii.  p.  309. 
Vol.  II.— 6  o^ 


83 


Pf^A/l   OF  GRANADA. 


before  the  disaffected  city  of  Guadix  with  a  force  large 
enough  to  awe  it  into  submission,  proposed  an  imme- 
diate investigation  of  the  conspiracy.  He  promised  to 
inflict  summary  justice  on  all  who  had  been  in  any 
degree  concerned  in  it;  at  the  same  time  offering 
permission  to  the  inhabitants,  in  the  abundance  of 
his  clemency,  to  depart  with  all  their  personal  effects 
wherever  they  would,  provided  they  should  prefer  this 
to  a  judicial  investigation  of  their  conduct.  This 
politic  proffer  had  its  effect.  There  were  few,  if  any, 
of  the  citizens  who  had  not  been  either  directly  con- 
cerned in  the  conspiracy  or  privy  to  it.  With  one 
accord,  therefore,  they  preferred  exile  to  trusting  to  the 
tender  mercies  of  their  judges.  In  this  way,  says  the 
Curate  of  Los  Palacios,  by  the  mystery  of  our  Lord, 
was  the  ancient  city  of  Guadix  brought  again  within 
the  Christian  fold:  the  mosques  were  converted  into 
Christian  temples,  filled  with  the  harmonies  of  Catholic 
worship,  and  the  pleasant  places,  which  for  nearly  eight 
centuries  had  been  trampled  under  the  foot  of  the  in- 
fidel, once  more  restored  to  the  followers  of  the  Cross. 
A  similar  policy  produced  similar  results  in  the  cities 
of  Almeria  and  Baza,  whose  inhabitants,  evacuating 
their  ancient  homes,  transported  themselves,  with  such 
personal  effects  as  they  could  carry,  to  the  city  of 
Granada,  or  the  coast  of  Africa.  The  space  thus  opened 
by  the  fugitive  population  was  quickly  filled  by  the 
rushing  tide  of  Spaniards.' 

S  Pulgar,  Reyes  Cal61icos,  cap.  131, 132. — Bernaldez,  Reyes  Cat61icos, 
MS.,  cap.  97. — Conde,  Dominacion  de  los  Arabes,  torn.  iii.  cap.  41.^ 
Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  lib.  3,  epist.  84. — Garibay,  Compendio,  torn, 
iv.  p.  424. — Cardonne,  Hist,  de  I'Afrique  et  de  I'Espagne,  torn.  iii.  pp. 

309.  310. 


SURRENDER   OF  THE   CAPITAL. 


83 


It  is  impossible  at  this  day  to  contemplate  these 
events  with  the  triumphant  swell  of  exultation  with 
which  they  are  recorded  by  contemporary  chroniclers. 
That  the  Moors  were  guilty  (though  not  so  generally 
as  pretended)  of  the  alleged  conspiracy,  is  not  in  itself 
improbable,  and  is  corroborated  indeed  by  the  Arabic 
statements.  But  the  punishment  was  altogether  dis- 
proportionate to  the  offence.  Justice  might  surely  have 
been  satisfied  by  a  selection  of  the  authors  and  principal 
agents  of  the  meditated  insurrection;  for  no  overt  act 
appears  to  have  occurred.  But  avarice  was  too  strong 
for  justice;  and  this  act,  which  is  in  perfect  conformity 
to  the  policy  systematically  pursued  by  the  Spanish 
crown  for  more  than  a  century  afterwards,  may  be  con- 
sidered as  one  of  the  first  links  in  the  long  chain  of 
persecution  which  terminated  in  the  expulsion  of  the 
Moriscos. 

During  the  following  year,  1491,  a  circumstance 
occurred  illustrative  of  the  policy  of  the  present  govern- 
ment in  reference  to  ecclesiastical  matters.  The  chan- 
cery of  Valladolid  having  appealed  to  the  pope  in  a 
case  coming  within  its  own  exclusive  jurisdiction,  the 
queen  commanded  Alonso  de  Valdivieso,  bishop  of 
Leon,  the  president  of  the  court,  together  with  all  the 
auditors,  to  be  removed  from  their  respective  offices, 
which  she  delivered  to  a  new  board,  having  the  bishop 
of  Oviedo  at  its  head.  This  is  one  among  many  ex- 
amples of  the  constancy  with  which  Isabella,  notwith- 
standing her  reverence  for  religion  and  respect  for  its 
ministers,  refused  to  compromise  the  national  independ- 
ence by  recognizing  in  any  def  f^e  the  usurpations  of 
Rome.    From  this  dignified  attitude,  so  often  abandoned 


84 


fVj4/l  OF  GRANADA. 


by  her  successors,  she  never  swerved  for  a  moment 
during  the  course  of  her  long  reign.* 

The  winter  of  1490  was  busily  occupied  with  prep- 
arations for  the  closing  campaign  against  Granada. 
Ferdinand  took  command  of  the  army  in  the  month 
of  April,  1 49 1,  with  the  purpose  of  sitting  down  be- 
fore the  Moorish  capital,  not  to  rise  until  its  final  sur- 
render. The  troops,  which  mustered  in  the  Val  de 
Velillos,  are  computed  by  most  historians  at  fifty  thou- 
sand horse  and  foot,  although  Martyr,  who  served  as  a 
volunteer,  swells  the  number  to  eighty  thousand.  They 
were  drawn  from  the  different  cities,  chiefly,  as  usual, 
from  Andalusia,  which  had  been  stimulated  to  truly 
gigantic  efforts  throughout  this  protracted  war,'  and 
from  the  nobility  of  every  quarter,  many  of  whom,  wea- 
ried out  with  the  contest,  contented  themselves  with 
sending  their  quotas,  while  many  others,  as  the  marquises 
of  Cadiz  and  Villena,  the  counts  of  Tendilla,  Cabra, 
and  Urefia,  and  Alonso  de  Aguilar,  appeared  in  person, 
eager,  as  they  had  borne  the  brunt  of  so  many  hard 
campaigns,  to  share  in  the  closing  scene  of  triumph. 

On  the  26th  of  the  month  the  army  encamped  near 
the  fountain  of  Ojos  de  Huescar,  in  the  vega,  about 
two  leagues  distant  from  Granada.  Ferdinand's  first 
movement  was  to  detach  a  considerable  force,  under 

'  Carbajal,  Anales,  MS.,  aiio  1491. 

7  According  to  Zufiiga,  the  quota  furnished  by  Seville  this  season 
amounted  to  6000  foot  and  500  horse,  who  were  recruited  by  fresh 
reinforcements  no  less  than  five  times  during  the  campaign.  Annates 
de  Sevilla,  p.  406. — The  supplies  drawn  from  the  northern  provinces 
of  Guipuscoa  and  Alava  amounted  to  only  1000  foot,  450  crossbow- 
men,  and  550  lancers,  who  were  to  keep  the  field  for  sixty  days. — Col 
de  C^dulas,  tom.  iii.  no.  43 ;  torn.  iv.  no.  31. 


SURRENDER   OF  THE  CAPITAL, 


85 


the  marquis  of  Villena,  which  he  subsequently  sup- 
ported in  person  with  the  remainder  of  the  army,  for 
the  purpose  or  scouring  the  fruitful  regions  of  the 
Alpujarras,  which  served  as  the  granary  of  the  capital. 
This  service  was  performed  with  such  unsparing  rigor 
that  no  less  than  twenty- four  towns  and  hamlets  in  the 
mountains  were  ransacked  and  razed  to  the  ground. 
After  this,  Ferdinand  returned  loaded  with  spoil  to  his 
former  position  on  the  banks  of  the  Xenil,  in  full  view 
of  the  Moorish  metropolis,  which  seemed  to  stand 
alone,  like  some  sturdy  oak,  the  last  of  the  forest,  bid- 
ding defiance  to  the  storm  which  had  prostrated  all  its 
brethren. 

Notwithstanding  the  failure  of  all  external  resources, 
Granada  was  still  formidable  from  its  local  position 
and  its  defences.  On  the  east  it  was  fenced  in  by 
a  wild  mountain  barrier,  the  Sierra  Nevada^  whose 
snow-clad  summits  diffused  a  grateful  coolness  over 
the  city  through  the  sultry  heats  of  summer.  The 
side  towards  the  vega,  facing  the  Christian  encamp- 
ment, was  encircled  by  walls  and  towers  of  massive 
strength  and  solidity.  The  population,  swelled  to  two 
hundred  thousand  by  the  immigration  from  the  sur- 
rounding country,  was  likely,  indeed,  to  be  a  burden 
in  a  protracted  siege ;  but  among  them  were  twenty 
thousand,  the  flower  of  the  Moslem  chivalry,  who  had 
escaped  the  edge  of  the  Christian  sword.  In  front 
of  the  city,  for  an  extent  of  nearly  ten  leagues,  lay 
unrolled  the  magnificent  vega, — 

"  Fresca  y  rcgalada  ve^a, 
Diilce  recreacion  de  damas 
Y  de  hombres  gloria  immensa," — 


86 


IVA/l   OF  GHANA  DA. 


whose  prolific  beauties  could  scarcely  be  exaggerated 
in  the  most  florid  strains  of  the  Arabian  minstrel,  and 
which  still  bloomed  luxuriant,  notwithstanding  the 
repeated  ravages  of  the  preceding  season." 

The  inhabitants  of  Granada  were  filled  with  indig- 
nation at  the  sight  of  their  enemy,  thus  encamped 
under  the  shadow,  as  it  were,  of  their  battlements. 
They  sallied  forth  in  small  bodies,  or  singly,  challeng- 
ing the  Spaniards  to  equal  encounter.  Numerous  were 
the  combats  which  took  place  between  the  high-mettled 
cavaliers  on  both  sides,  who  met  on  the  level  arena, 
as  on  a  tilting-ground,  where  they  might  display  their 
prowess  in  the  presence  of  the  assembled  beauty  and 
chivalry  of  their  respective  nations;  for  the  Spanish 
camp  was  graced,  as  usual,  by  the  presence  of  queen 
Isabella  and  the  infantas,  with  the  courtly  train  of 
ladies  who  had  accompanied  their  royal  mistress  frcm 
Alcala  la  Real.  The  Spanish  ballads  glow  with  pictu- 
resque details  of  these  knightly  tourneys,  forming  the 
most  attractive  portion  of  this  romantic  minstrelsy, 
which,  celebrating  the  prowess  of  Moslem  as  well  as 


B  Conde,  Dominacion  de  los  Arabes,  torn.  iii.  cap.  42. — Bernaldez, 
Reyes  Catdlicos,  MS.,  cap.  icx). — Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  lib.  3, 
epist.  89. — Marmol,  Rebelion  de  los  Moriscos,  lib.  i,  cap.  18. — L.  Ma* 
rineo,  Cosas  inemorables,  fol.  177. — Martyr  remarks  that  the  Genoese 
merchants,  "  voyagers  to  every  clime,  declare  this  to  be  the  largest  for- 
tified city  in  the  world."  Casiri  has  collected  a  body  of  interesting 
particulars  respecting  the  wealth,  population,  and  social  habits  of 
Granada,  from  various  Arabic  authorities.  Bibliotheca  E^curialensis, 
torn.  ii.  pp.  247-260.  —  The  French  work  of  Laborde,  Voyage  pitto- 
resque  (Paris,  1807),  and  the  English  one  of  Murphy,  Engravings  of 
Arabian  Antiquities  of  Spain  (London,  1816),  do  ample  justice  in  their 
finished  designs  to  the  general  topography  and  architectural  magnifi- 
cence of  Granada. 


SUKKENDER  OF  THE   CAPITAL. 


8? 


Christian  warriors,  sheds  a  dying  glory  round  the  last 
hours  of  Granada.* 

The  festivity  which  reigned  throughout  the  camp 
on  the  arrival  of  Isabella  did  not  divert  her  attention 
from  the  stern  business  of  war.  She  superintended  the 
military  preparations,  and  personally  inspected  every 
part  of  the  encampment.  She  appeared  on  the  field 
superbly  mounted,  and  dressed  in  complete  armor; 
and,  as  she  visited  the  different  quarters  and  reviewed 
her  troops,  she  administered  words  of  commendation 
or  sympathy,  suited  to  the  condition  of  the  soldier.  •• 

On  one  occasion  she  expressed  a  desire  to  take  a 
nearer  survey  of  the  city.  For  this  purpose  a  house 
was  selected,  affording  the  best  point  of  view,  in  the 

9  On  one  occasion,  a  Christian  knight  having  discomfited  with  a. 
I)andful  of  men  a  much  superior  body  of  Moslem  chivalry,  King 
Abdallah  testified  his  admiration  of  his  prowess  by  sending  him  on 
the  following  day  a  magnificent  present,  together  with  his  own  sword 
superbly  mounted.  (Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de  Hist.,  tom.  vi.  p.  178.)  The 
Moorish  ballad  beginning 

"Al  Rey  Chico  de  Granada  " 

describes  the  panic  occasioned  in  the  city  by  the  Christian  encamp^ 
ment  on  the  Xenil : 

"  Por  ese  fresco  Genii 
un  campo  viene  marchando, 
todo  de  lucida  gente, 
las  annas  van  relumbrando. 

"  Las  vanderas  traen  tendidas, 
y  un  estandarte  dorado ; 
el  General  de  esta  gente 
es  el  invicto  Fernando. 
Y  tambien  viene  la  Reyna, 
Muger  del  Rey  don  Fernando, 
la  qual  tiene  tanto  esfuerzo 
que  anitna  a  qualquiersoldado." 

»  Bemaldez,  Reyes  Cat^licos,  MS.,  cap.  loi. 


88 


pyA/l   OF  GHANADA. 


little  village  of  Zubia,  at  no  great  distance  front 
Granada.  The  king  and  queeh  stationed  themselves 
before  a  window  which  commanded  an  unbroken  pros- 
pect of  the  Alhambra  and  the  most  beautiful  quarter 
of  the  town.  In  the  mean  while,  a  considerable  force, 
under  the  marquis  duke  of  Cadiz,  had  been  ordered, 
for  the  protection  of  the  royal  persons,  to  take  up  a 
position  between  the  village  and  the  city  of  Granada, 
with  strict  injunctions  on  no  account-  to  engage  the 
enemy,  as  Isabella  was  unwilling  to  stain  the  pleasures 
of  the  day  with  unnecessary  effusion  of  blood. 

The  people  of  Granada,  however,  were  too  impa- 
tient long  to  endure  the  presence  and,  as  they  deemed 
it,  the  bravado  of  their  enemy.  They  burst  forth  from 
the  gates  of  the  capital,  dragging  along  with  them 
several  pieces  of  ordnance,  and  commenced  a  brisk 
assault  on  the  Spanish  lines.  The  latter  sustained  the 
shock  with  firmness,  till  the  marquis  of  Cadiz,  seeing 
them  thrown  into  some  disorder,  found  it  necessary 
to  assume  the  ofTensive,  and,  mustering  his  followers 
around  him,  made  one  of  those  desperate  charges  which 
had  so  often  broken  the  enemy.  The  Moorish  cav- 
alry faltered,  but  might  have  disputed  the  ground,  had 
it  not  been  for  the  infantry,  which,  composed  of  the 
rabble  population  of  the  city,  was  easily  thrown  into 
confusion,  and  hurried  the  horse  along  with  it.  The 
rout  now  became  general.  The  Spanish  cavaliers, 
whose  blood  was  up,  pursued  to  the  very  gates  of  Gra- 
nada; '*  and  not  a  lance,"  says  Bernaldez,  "  that  day, 
but  was  dyed  in  the  blood  of  the  infidel."  Two  thou- 
sand of  the  enemy  were  slain  and  taken  in  the  engage- 
ment, which  lasted  only  a  short  time  ;  and  the  slaughter 


SURRENDER   OF  THE  CAPITAL. 


«9 


was  stopped  only  by  the  escape  of  the  fugitives  within 
the  walls  of  the  city." 

About  the  middle  of  July,  an  accident  occurred  in 
the  camp,  which  was  like  to  have  been  attended  with 
fatal  consequences.  The  queen  was  lodged  in  a  superb 
pavilion,  belonging  to  the  marquis  of  Cadiz,  and  al- 
ways used  by  him  in  the  Moorish  war.  By  the  care- 
lessness of  one  of  her  attendants,  a  lamp  was  placed  in 
such  a  situation  that  during  the  night,  perhaps  owing 
to  a  gust  of  wind,  it  set  fire  to  the  drapery  or  loose 
hangings  of  the  pavilion,  which  was  instantly  in  a  blaze. 
The  flame  communicated  with  fearful  rapidity  to  the 
neighboring  tents,  made  of  light,  combustible  materials, 
and  the  camp  was  menaced  with  general  conflagration. 
This  occurred  at  the  dead  of  night,  when  all  but  the 
sentinels  were  buried  in  sleep.  The  queen,  and  her 
children,  whose  apartments  were  near  hers,  were  in 
great  peril,  and  escaped  with  difficulty,  though  fortu- 
nately without  injury.  The  alarm  soon  spread.  The 
trumpets  sounded  to  arms,  for  it  was  supposed  to  be 
some  night  attack  of  the  enemy.  Ferdinand,  snatch- 
ing up  his  arms  hastily,  put  himself  at  the  head  of  his 
troops,  but,  soon  ascertaining  the  nature  of  the  disas- 
ter, contented  himself  with  posting  the  marquis  of 
Cadiz,  with  a  strong  body  of  horse,  over  against  the 
city,  in  order  to  repel  any  sally  from  that  quarter. 

*«  Bemaldez,  Reyes  Cat61icos,  MS.,  cap.  loi. — Conde,  Dominacion 
de  los  Arabes,  torn.  iii.  cap.  42. — Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  lib.  4, 
epist.  90. — Pulgar,  Reyes  Cat61icos,  cap.  133. — Zurita,  Anales,  torn.  iv. 
cap.  88. — Isabella  afterwards  caused  a  Franciscan  monastery  to  be 
built  in  commemoration  of  this  event  at  Zubia,  where,  according  to 
Mr.  Irving,  the  house  from  which  she  witnessed  the  action  is  to  be 
seen  at  the  present  day.    See  Conquest  of  Granada,  chap.  90,  note. 


90 


IVAX   OF  GRANADA, 


None,  however,  was  attempted,  and  the  fire  was  at 
length  extinguished  without  {lersonal  injury,  though 
not  without  loss  of  much  valuable  property,  in  jewels, 
plate,  brocade,  and  other  costly  decorations  of  the 
tents  of  the  nobility.'" 

In  order  to  guard  against  a  similar  disaster,  as  well 
as  to  provide  comfortable  winter  quarters  for  the  army, 
should  the  siege  be  so  long  protracted  as  to  require  it, 
it  was  resolved  to  build  a  town  of  substantial  edifices 
on  the  place  of  the  present  encampment.  The  plan 
was  immediately  put  in  execution.  The  work  was 
distributed  in  due  proportions  among  the  troops  of  the 
several  cities  and  of  the  great  nobility;  the  soldier 
was  on  a  sudden  converted  into  an  artisan,  and,  instead 
of  war,  the  camp  echoed  with  the  sounds  of  peaceful 
labor. 

In  less  than  three  months  this  stupendous  task  was 
accomplished.  The  spot  so  recently  occupied  by 
light,  fluttering  pavilions  was  thickly  covered  with  solid 
structures  of  stone  and  mortar,  comprehending,  be- 
sides dwelling-houses,  stables  for  a  thousand  horses. 
The  town  was  thrown  into  a  quadrangular  form,  tra- 
versed by  two  spacious  avenues,  intersecting  each  other 
at  right  angles  in  the  centre,  in  the  form  of  a  cross, 
with  stately  portals  at  each  of  the  four  extremities. 
Inscriptions  on  blocks  of  marble,  in  the  various  quar- 
ters, recorded  the  respective  shares  of  the  several  cities 
in  the  execution  of  the  work.     When  it  was  completed, 


w  Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  lib.  4,  epist.  91. — Bemaldez,  Reyes 
Cat61icos,  MS.,  cap.  loi.— Garibay,  Compendio,  torn.  ii.  p.  673.— 
Bleda,  CoriSnica,  p.  619,— Marmol,  RebpUon  de  los  Moriscos,  lib.  i, 
cap.  18. 


SURRENDER  OF  THE  CAPITAL, 


91 


the  whole  army  was  desirous  that  the  new  <  ity  should 
bear  the  name  of  their  illustrious  queen  ;  but  Isabella 
nio<iestly  declined  this  tribute,  and  bestowed  on  the 
place  the  title  of  Santa  />,  in  token  of  the  unshaken 
trust  manifested  by  her  people  throughout  this  war  in 
Divine  Providence.  With  this  name  it  still  stands  as 
it  was  erected  in  1491,  a  monument  of  the  constancy 
and  enduring  patience  of  the  Spaniards,  "  the  only 
city  in  Spain,"  in  the  words  of  a  Castilian  writer, 
"that  has  never  been  contaminated  by  the  Moslem 
heresy."" 

The  erection  of  Santa  Fe  by  the  Spaniards  struck 
a  greater  damp  into  the  people  of  Granada  than  the 
most  successful  military  achievement  could  have  done. 
They  beheld  the  enemy  setting  foot  on  their  soil  with 
a  resolution  never  more  to  resign  it.  They  already 
began  to  suffer  from  the  rigorous  blockade,  which  ef- 
fectually excluded  supplies  from  their  own  territories, 
while  all  communication  with  Africa  was  jealously  in- 
tercepted. Symptoms  of  insubordination  had  begun  to 
show  themselves  among  the  overgrown  population  of 
the  city,  as  it  felt  more  and  more  the  pressure  of  fam- 
ine.    In  this  crisis,  the  unfortunate  Abdallah  and  his 

•3  Estrada,  Poblacion  de  Espafla,  torn.  ii.  pp.  344,  348. — Peter  Mar- 
tyr, Opus  Epist.,  lib.  4,  epist.  91. — Marmol,  Rebelion  de  los  Moriscos, 
lib.  I,  cap.  18. — Hita,  who  embellishes  his  florid  prose  with  occasional 
extracts  from  the  beautiful  ballad  poetry  of  Spain,  gives  one  commem* 
orating  the  erection  of  Santa  Fe : 

"  Cercada  esta  Santa  Fe 
con  niucho  lienzo  encerado 
a!  rededor  muchas  tiendaa 
de  8eda,  oro,  y  brocado. 

"  Donde  estan  Dtiques,  y  Condes, 
Sefiores  de  gran  estado,"  etc. 

Guerras  de  Granada,  p.  513. 


92 


fVAH   OF  GRANADA. 


I 


principal  counsellors  became  convinced  that  the  place 
could  not  be  maintained  much  longer ;  and  at  length, 
in  the  month  of  October,  propositions  were  made, 
through  the  vizier  Abul  Cazim  Abdelmalic,  to  open  a 
negotiation  for  the  surrender  of  the  place.  The  affair 
was  to  be  conducted  with  the  utmost  caution ;  since 
the  people  of  Granada,  notwithstanding  their  preca- 
rious condition  and  their  disquietude,  were  buoyed  up 
by  indefinite  expectations  of  relief  from  Africa  or  some 
other  quarter. 

The  Spanish  sovereigns  intrusted  the  negotiation 
to  their  secretary,  Fernando  de  Zafra,  and  to  Gon- 
salvo  de  Cordova,  the  latter  of  whom  was  selected  for 
this  delicate  business  from  his  uncommon  address  and 
his  familiarity  with  the  Moorish  habits  and  language. 
Thus  the  capitulation  of  Granada  was  referred  to  the 
man  who  acquired  in  her  long  wars  the  military  science 
which  enabled  him,  at  a  later  period,  to  foil  the  most 
distinguished  generals  of  Europe. 

The  conferences  were  conducted  by  night,  with  the 
utmost  secrecy,  sometimes  within  the  walls  of  Gra- 
nada, and  at  others  in  the  little  hamlet  of  Churriana, 
about  a  league  distant  from  it.  At  length,  after  large 
discussion  on  both  sides,  the  terms  of  capitulation 
were  definitively  settled,  and  ratified  by  the  respective 
monarchs  on  the  25th  of  November,  1491.'* 

M  Pedraza,  Antiguedad  de  Granada,  fol.  74.-»Giovio,  De  Vita  Gon- 
salvi,  apud  Vitae  lUust.  Virorum,  pp.  211,  212. — Salazar  de  Mendoza, 
Cr6n.  del  Gran  Cardenal,  p.  236. — Cardonne,  Hist,  de  TAfrique  et  de 
I'Espagne,  torn.  iii.  pp.  316,  317. — Conde,  Dominacion  de  los  Arabes, 
torn.  iii.  cap.  42. — L.  Marineo,  Cosas  memorables,  fol.  178. — Marmol, 
however,  assigns  the  date  in  the  text  to  a  separate  capitulation  respect- 
ing Abdallah,  dating  that  made  in  behalf  of  the  city  three  days  later. 
(RebelJon  de  los  Moriscos,  lib.  i,  cap.  19.)    This  author  has  given  the 


SURRENDER   OF  THE   CAPITAL, 


93 


The  conditions  were  of  similar  though  somewhat 
more  liberal  import  than  those  granted  to  Baza.  The 
inhabitants  of  Granada  were  to  retain  possession  of 
their  mosques,  with  the  free  exercise  of  their  religion, 
with  all  its  peculiar  rites  and  ceremonies ;  they  were 
to  be  judged  by  their  own  laws,  under  their  own  cadis 
or  magistrates,  subject  to  the  general  control  of  the 
Castilian  governor;  they  were  to  be  unmolested  in 
their  ancient  usage  ,  manners,  language,  and  dress;  to 
be  protected  in  the  full  enjoyment  of  their  property, 
with  the  right  of  disposing  of  it  on  their  own  account, 
and  of  migrating  when  and  where  they  would ;  and  to 
be  furnished  with  vessels  for  the  conveyance  of  such  as 
chose  within  three  years  to  pass  into  Africa.  No  heavier 
taxes  were  to  be  imposed  than  those  customarily  paid 
to  their  Arabic  sovereigns,  and  none  whatever  before 
the  expiration  of  three  years.  King  Abdallah  was  to 
reign  over  a  specified  territory  in  the  Alpujarras,  for 
which  he  was  to  do  homage  to  the  Castilian  crown. 
The  artillery  and  the  fortifications  were  to  be  delivered 
into  the  hands  of  the  Christians,  and  the  city  was  to  be 
surrendered  in  sixty  days  from  the  date  of  the  capitula- 
tion. Such  were  the  principal  terms  of  the  surrender 
of  Granada,  as  authenticated  by  the  most  accredited 
Castilian  and  Arabic  authorities ;  which  I  have  stated 

articles  of  the  treaty  with  greater  fulness  and  precision  than  any  other 
Spanish  historian.* 


*  [Both  treaties — that  for  the  surrender  of  the  city  and  the  private 
capitulation  with  the  Moorish  monarch — bore  the  same  date,  which, 
with  the  substance,  is  correctly  given  in  the  text.  They  have  been  pub- 
lished in  full,  from  documents — but,  apparently,  not  the  original  docu- 
ments— at  Simancas,  in  the  8th  volume  of  the  Col.  de  Doc.  in^d.  para 
la  Hist,  de  Espafia.— ED.] 


94 


PVAH   OF  GRANADA. 


the  more  precisely,  as  affording  the  best  data  for  esti- 
mating the  extent  of  Spanish  perfidy  in  later  times.** 

The  conferences  could  not  be  conducted  so  secretly 
but  that  some  report  of  them  got  air  among  the  popu- 
lace of  the  city,  who  now  regarded  Abdallah  with  an 
evil  eye  for  his  connection  with  the  Christians.  When 
the  fact  of  the  capitulation  became  known,  the  agita- 
tion speedily  mounted  into  an  open  insurrection,  which 
menaced  the  safety  of  the  city,  as  well  as  of  Abdallah' s 
person.  In  this  alarming  state  of  things,  it  was  thought 
best  by  that  monarch's  counsellors  to  anticipate  the 
appointed  day  of  surrender ;  and  the  2d  of  January, 
1492,  was  accordingly  fixed  on  for  that  purpose. 

Every  preparation  was  made  by  the  Spaniards  for 
performing  this  last  act  of  the  drama  with  suitable 
pomp  and  effect.  The  mourning  which  the  court  had 
put  on  for  the  death  of  Prince  Alonso  of  Portugal, 
occasioned  by  a  fall  from  his  horse  a  few  months  after 
his  marriage  with  the  infanta  Isabella,  was  exchanged 
for  gay  and  magnificent  apparel.  On  the  morning  of 
the  2d,  the  whole  Christian  camp  exhibited  a  scene  of 
the  most  animating  bustle.  The  grand  cardinal  Men- 
's Marmol,  Rebelion  de  los  Moriscos,  lib.  i,  cap.  19. — Conde,  Do- 
minacion  de  los  Arabes,  torn.  iii.  cap.  42. — Zurita,  Anales,  torn.  ii.  cap. 
90. — Cardonne,  Hist,  de  I'Afrique  at  de  I'Espagne,  torn.  iii.  pp.  317, 
318. — Oviedo,  Quincuagenas,  MS.,  bat.  1,  quinc.  i,  dial.  28. — Martyi 
adds  that  the  principal  Moorish  nobility  were  to  remove  from  the  city. 
(Opus  Epist.,  lib.  4,  epist.  92.)  Pedraza,  who  has  devoted  a  volume 
to  the  history  of  Granada,  does  not  seem  to  think  the  capitulations  worth 
specifying.  Most  of  the  modern  Castilians  pass  very  lightly  over  them. 
They  fui  nish  too  bitter  a  comment  on  the  conduct  of  subsequent  Spanish 
monarchs.  Marmol  and  the  judicious  Zurita  agree  in  every  substantial 
particular  with  Conde,  and  this  coincidence  may  be  considered  as  es- 
tablishing the  actual  terms  of  the  treaty. 


SURRENDER  OF  THE   CAPITAL. 


95 


doza  was  sent  forward  at  the  head  of  a  large  detach- 
ment, comprehending  his  household  troops,  and  the 
veteran  infantry  grown  gray  in  the  Moorish  wars,  to 
occupy  the  Alhambra  preparatory  to  the  entrance  of 
the  sovereigns.**  Ferdinand  stationed  himself  at  some 
distance  in  the  rear,  near  an  Arabian  mosque,  since 
consecrated  as  the  hermitage  of  St.  Sebastian.  He  was 
surrounded  by  his  courtiers,  with  their  stately  retinues, 
glittering  in  gorgeous  panoply,  and  proudly  displaying 
the  armorial  bearings  of  their  ancient  houses.  The 
queen  halted  still  farther  in  the  rear,  at  the  village  of 
Armilla.*' 

As  the  column  under  the  grand  cardinal  advanced 
up  the  Hill  of  Martyrs,  over  which  a  road  had  been 
constructed  for  the  passage  of  the  artillery,  he  was  met 
by  the  Moorish  prince  Abdallah,  attended  by  fifty  cav- 
aliers, who,  descending  the  hill,  rode  up  to  the  posi- 
tion occupied  by  Ferdinand  on  the  banks  of  the  Xenil, 
As  the  Moor  approached  the  Spanish  king,  he  would 
have  thrown  himself  from  his  horse  and  saluted  his 
hand  in  token  of  homage ;  but  Ferdinand  hastily  pre- 
vented him,  embracing  him  with  every  mark  of  sym- 

>*  Oviedo,  whose  narrative  exhibits  many  discrepancies  with  those 
of  other  contemporaries,  assigns  this  part  to  the  count  of  Tendilla,  the 
first  captain-general  of  Granada.  (Quincuagenas,  MS.,  bat.  i,  quinc. 
I,  dial.  28.)  But  as  this  writer,  though  an  eye-witness,  was  but  thirteen 
or  fourteen  years  of  age  at  the  time  of  the  capture,  and  wrote  some 
sixty  years  later  from  his  early  recollections,  his  authority  cannot  be 
considered  of  equal  weight  with  that  of  persons  who,  like  Martyr,  de- 
scribed events  as  they  were  passing  before  them. 

»7  Pedraza,  Antigtiedad  de  Granada,  fol.  75. — Salazar  de  Mendoza, 
Cr6n.  del  Gran  Cardenal,  p.  238. — Zurita,  Anales,  torn.  iv.  cap.  90.— 
Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  lib.  4,  epist.  92. — Abarca,  Reyes  de  Aragon, 
torn.  ii.  fol.  309. — Marmol,  Rebelion  de  los  Moriscos,  lib.  i,  cap,  20. 


96 


IVA/i  OF  GRANADA. 


pathy  and  regard.  Abdallah  then  delivered  up  the  keys 
of  the  Alhambra  to  his  conqueror,  saying,  "  They  are 
thine,  O  king,  since  Allah  so  decrees  it :  use  thy  suc- 
cess with  clemency  and  moderation. ' '  Ferdinand  would 
have  uttered  some  words  of  consolation  to  the  unfor- 
tunate prince,  but  he  moved  forward  with  a  dejected 
air  to  the  spot  occupied  by  Isabella,  and,  after  similar 
acts  of  obeisance,  passed  on  to  join  his  family,  who 
had  preceded  him  with  his  most  valuable  effects  on  the 
route  to  the  Alpujarras.** 

The  sovereigns  during  this  time  awaited  with  impa- 
tience the  signal  of  the  occupation  of  the  city  by  the 
cardinal's  troops,  which,  winding  slowly  along  the  outer 
circuit  of  the  walls,  as  previously  arranged,  in  order  to 
spare  the  feelings  of  the  citizens  as  far  as  possible,  en- 
tered by  what  is  now  called  the  gate  of  Los  Molinos. 
In  a  short  time,  the  large  silver  cross,  borne  by  Ferdi- 
nand throughout  the  crusade,  was  seen  sparkling  in  the 
sunbeams,  while  the  standards  of  Castile  and  St.  Jago 
waved  triumphantly  from  the  red  towers  of  the  Alham- 
bra. At  this  glorious  spectacle  the  choir  of  the  royal 
chapel  broke  forth  into  the  solemn  anthem  of  the  Te 
Deum,  and  the  whole  army,  penetrated  with  deep  emo- 
tion, prostrated  themselves  on  their  knees  in  adoration 
of  the  Lord  of  hosts,  who  had  at  length  granted  the 
consummation  of  their  wishes,  in  this  last  and  glorious 
triumph  of  the  Cross.''    The  grandees  who  surrounded 

«>  Marmol,  Rebelion  de  los  Moriscos,  ubi  supra. — Conde,  Domina- 
cion  de  los  Arabes,  torn.  iii.  cap.  43. — Pedraza,  Antiguedad  de  Gra- 
nada, fol.  76. — BernaWez,  Reyes  Cat61icos,  MS.,  cap.  102. — Zurita, 
Anales,  tom.  iv.  cap.  90. — Oviedo,  Quincuagenas,  MS.,  bat.  i,  quinc. 
E,  dial.  28. 

■»  Oviedo,  Quincuagenas,  MS.,  ubi  supra. — One  is  reminded  of 


SURRENDER   OF  THE   CAPITAL. 


97 


Ferdinand  then  advanced  towards  the  queen,  and, 
kneeling  down,  saluted  her  hand  in  token  of  homage 
to  her  as  sovereign  of  Granada.  The  procession  took 
up  its  march  towards  the  city,  "the  king  and  queen 
moving  in  the  midst,"  says  an  historian,  "emblazoned 
with  royal  magnificence ;  and,  as  they  were  in  the 
prime  of  life,  and  had  now  achieved  the  completion 
of  this  glorious  conquest,  they  seemed  to  represent 
even  more  than  their  wonted  majesty.  Equal  with  each 
other,  they  were  raised  far  above  the  rest  of  the  world. 
They  appeared,  indeed,  more  than  mortal,  and  as  if 
sent  by  Heaven  for  the  salvation  of  Spain."* 

Tasso's  description  of  the  somewhat  similar  feelings  exhibited  by  the 
crusaders  on  their  entrance  into  Jerusalem : 

"  Ecco  apparir  Gerusalem  si  vede, 
Ecco  additar  Gerusalem  si  scorge ; 
Ecco  da  mille  voci  unitamente 
Gerusalemtne  salutar  si  seiite. 

Al  gran  piacer  che  quella  prima  vista 
Dolcemente  spir6  nell'  altrui  petto. 
Aha  contrizion  successe,  mista 
Di  timoroso  e  riverente  aflfetto. 
Osano  appena  d'  innalzar  la  vista 
Ver  la  citti," 

Gerusalemme  Liberata,  Cant.  iii.  at.  3,  5. 

■o  Mariana,  Hist,  de  Espafia,  torn.  ii.  p.  597. — Pedraza,  Antigiiedad 
de  Granada,  fol.  76. — Carbajal,  Anales,  MS.,  aiio  1492. — Conde,  Domi- 
nacion  de  los  Arabes,  torn.  iii.  cap.  43, — Bleda,  Cor6nica,  pp.  621, 
622. — Zurita,  Anales,  torn.  iy.  cap.  90. — Marmol,  Rebelion  de  los 
Moriscos,  lib.  i,  cap.  20. — L.  Marineo,  and  indeed  most  of  the  Span- 
ish authorities,  represent  the  sovereigns  as  having  postponed  their  en- 
trance into  the  city  until  tlie  sth  or  6th  of  January.  A  letter  transcribed 
by  Pedraza,  addressed  by  the  queen  to  the  prior  of  Guadalupe,  one 
of  her  council,  dated  from  the  city  of  Granada  on  the  2d  of  January, 
1492,  shows  the  inaccuracy  of  this  statement.  See  folio  76. 
In  Mr.  Lockhart's  picturesque  version  of  the  Moorish  ballads  the 
Vol.  II.— 7  e 


98 


fVA/i   OF  GRANADA. 


In  the  mean  while  the  Moorish  king,  traversing  the 
route  of  the  Alpujarras,  reached  a  rocky  eminence 
which  commanded  a  last  view  of  Granada.  He  checked 
his  horse,  and,  as  his  eye  for  the  last  time  wandered 
over  the  scenes  of  his  departed  greatness,  his  heart 
swelled,  and  he  burst  into  tears.  "You  do  well,"  said 
his  more  masculine  mother,  "  to  weep  like  a  woman 
for  what  you  could  not  defend  like  a  man  1"  **Alas!" 
exclaimed  the  unhappy  exile,  "when  were  woes  ever 
equal  to  mine !"  The  scene  of  this  event  is  still  pointed 
out  to  the  traveller  by  the  people  of  the  district ;  and 
the  rocky  height  from  which  the  Moorish  chief  took 
his  sad  farewell  of  the  princely  abodes  of  his  youth 
is  commemorated  by  the  poetical  title  of  El  ultimo 
Sospiro  del  Mora  y  "The  Last  Sigh  of  the  Moor." 

The  sequel  of  Abdallah's  history  is  soon  told.  Like 
his  uncle,  El  Zagal,  he  pined  away  in  his  barren  do- 
main of  the  Alpujarras,  under  the  shadow,  as  it  were, 
of  his  ancient  palaces.  In  the  following  year  he  passed 
over  to  Fez  with  his  family,  having  commuted  his  petty 
sovereignty  for  a  considerable  sum  of  money  paid  him 
by  Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  and  soon  after  fell  in  battle 
in  the  service  of  an  African  prince,  his  kinsman. 
"Wretched  man,"  exclaims  a  caustic  chronicler  of  his 

reader  may  find  an  animated  description  of  the  triumphant  entry  of 
the  Christian  army  into  Granada : 

"  There  was  crying  in  Granada  when  the  sun  was  going  down. 
Some  calling  on  the  Trinity,  some  calling  on  Mahoun  ; 
Here  passed  away  the  Koran,  there  in  the  cross  was  borne, 
And  here  was  heard  the  Christian  bell,  and  there  the  Moorish  horn, 
TV  DeniH  lautiamm  was  up  the  Alcala  sung ; 
Down  from  the  Alhambra's  minarets  were  all  the  crescents  flung; 
The  arms  thereon  of  Aragon  and  Castile  they  display: 
One  king  comes  in  in  triumph,  one  weeping  goes  away." 


SURRENDER   OF  THE  CAPITAL. 


99 


nation,  "who  could  lose  his  life  in  another's  cause, 
though  he  did  not  dare  to  die  in  his  own !  Such," 
continues  the  Arabian,  with  characteristic  resignation, 
"was  the  immutable  decree  of  destiny.  Blessed  be 
Allah,  who  exalteth  and  debaseth  the  kings  of  the 
earth,  according  to  his  divine  will,  in  whose  fulfilment 
consists  that  eternal  justice  which  regulates  all  human 
affairs."  The  portal  through  which  King  Abdallah  for 
the  last  time  issued  from  his  capital  was  at  his  request 
walled  up,  that  none  other  might  again  pass  through  it. 
In  this  condition  it  remains  to  this  day,  a  memorial  of 
the  sad  destiny  of  the  last  of  the  kings  of  Granada." 

The  fall  of  Granada  excited  a  general  sensation 
throughout  Christendom,  where  it  was  received  as 
counterbalancing,  in  a  manner,  the  loss  of  Constanti- 
nople nearly  half  a  century  before.  At  Rome  the 
event  was  commemorated  by  a  solemn  procession  of  the 
pope  and  cardinals  to  St.  Peter's,  where  high  mass  was 

"  Conde,  Dominacion  de  los  Arabes,  torn.  iii.  cap.  90. — Cardonne, 
Hist,  de  I'Afrique  et  de  I'Espagne,  torn.  iii.  pp.  319,  320,— Garibay, 
Compendio,  torn.  iv.  lib.  40,  cap.  42. — Mannol,  Rebelion  de  los  Moris- 
cos,  lib.  I,  cap.  20. — Mr.  Irving,  in  his  beautiful  Spanish  Sketch-book, 
"  The  Alhambra,"  devotes  a  chapter  to  mementos  of  Boabdil,  in  which 
he  traces  minutely  the  route  of  the  deposed  monarch  after  quitting  the 
gates  of  his  capital.  The  same  author,  in  the  Appendix  to  his  Chron- 
icle of  Granada,  concludes  a  notice  of  Abdallah's  fate  with  the  follow- 
ing description  of  his  person  ;  "A  portrait  of  Boabdil  el  Chico  is  to 
be  seen  in  the  picture-gallery  of  the  Generalife.  He  is  represented 
with  a  mild,  handsome  face,  a  fair  complexion,  and  yellow  hair.  His 
dress  is  o'f  yellow  brocade,  relieved  with  black  velvet ;  and  he  has  a 
black  velvet  cap,  surmounted  with  a  crown.  In  the  armory  of  Madrid 
are  two  suits  of  armor  said  to  have  belonged  to  him,  one  of  solid  steel, 
with  very  little  ornament ;  the  morion  closed.  From  the  proportions 
of  these  suits  of  armor,  he  must  have  been  of  full  stature  and  vigorous 
form."    Note,  p.  398. 


lOO 


WAH   OF  GRANADA. 


celebrated,  and  the  public  rejoicing  continued  for  sev- 
eral days."  The  intelligence  was  welcomed  with  no 
less  satisfaction  in  England,  where  Henry  the  Seventh 
was  seated  on  the  throne.  The  circumstances  attend- 
ing it,  as  related  by  Lord  Bacon,  will  not  be  devoid  of 
interest  for  the  reader.  »3 

•»  Senarega,  Commentarii  de  Rebus  Genuensibus,  apud  Muratori, 
Rerum  Italicarum  Scriptores  (Mediolani,  1723-51),  torn.  xxiv.  p.  531. 
— It  formed  the  subject  of  a  theatrical  representation  before  the  court 
at  Naples,  in  the  same  year.  This  drama,  or  Farsa,  as  it  is  called  by 
its  distinguished  author,  Sannazaro,  is  an  allegorical  medley,  in  which 
Faith,  Joy,  and  the  false  prophet  Mahomet  play  the  principal  parts. 
The  difficulty  of  a  precise  classification  of  this  piece  has  given  rise  to 
warmer  discussion  among  Italian  critics  than  the  subject  may  be 
thought  to  warrant.  See  Signorelli,  Vicende  della  Coltura  nelle  due 
Sicilie  (Napoli,  1810),  torn.  iii.  pp.  543  et  seq. 

33  "  Somewhat  about  this  time,  came  letters  from  Ferdinando  and 
Isabella,  king  and  queen  of  Spain,  signifying  the  final  conquest  of 
Granada  from  the  Moors ;  which  action,  in  itself  so  worthy.  King  Fer- 
dinando, whose  manner  was,  never  to  lose  any  virtue  for  the  showing, 
had  expressed  and  displayed  in  his  letters  at  large,  with  all  the  par- 
ticularities and  religious  punctos  and  ceremonies  that  were  observed 
in  the  reception  of  that  city  and  kingdom ;  showing,  amongst  other 
things,  that  the  king  would  not  by  any  means  in  person  enter  the  city 
until  he  had  first  aloof  seen  the  Cross  set  up  upon  the  greater  tower  of 
Granada,  whereby  it  became  Christian  ground.  That  likewise,  before 
he  would  enter,  he  did  homage  to  God  above,  pronouncing  by  an 
herald  from  the  height  of  that  tower,  that  he  did  acknowledge  to  have 
recovered  that  kingdom  by  the  help  of  God  Almighty,  and  the  glorious 
Virgin,  and  the  virtuous  apostle  St.  James,  and  the  holy  father  Innocent 
VIII.,  together  with  the  aids  and  services  of  his  prelates,  nobles,  and 
commons.  That  yet  he  stirred  not  from  his  camp,  till  he  had  seen  a 
little  army  of  martyrs,  to  tlie  number  of  seven  hundred  and  more 
Christians,  that  had  lived  in  bonds  and  servitude,  is  slaves  to  the  Moors, 
pass  before  his  eyes,  singing  a  psalm  for  their  redemption ;  and  that  he 
had  given  tribute  unto  God,  by  alms  and  rt  lief  extended  to  them  all, 
for  his  admission  into  the  city.  These  thiags  were  in  the  letters,  with 
many  more  ceremonies  of  a  kind  of  holy  ostentation. 


SURRENDER   OF  THE  CAPITAL. 


lOX 


Thus  ended  the  war  of  Granada,  which  is  often  com- 
pared by  the  Castilian  chroniclers  to  that  of  Troy  in 
its  duration,  and  which  certainly  fully  equalled  the 
latter  in  variety  of  picturesque  and  romantic  incidents, 
and  in  circumstances  of  poetical  interest.  With  the 
surrender  of  its  capital  terminated  the  Arabian  empire 

"  Tne  king,  ever  willing  to  put  himself  into  the  consort  or  quire  of 
all  religious  actions,  uid  naturally  affecting  much  the  king  of  Spain,  as 
far  as  one  king  can  affect  another,  partly  for  his  virtues,  and  partly  for 
a  counterpoise  to  France,  ui>on  the  receipt  of  these  letters,  sent  all  his 
nobles  and  prelates  that  were  about  the  court,  together  with  the  mayor 
and  aldermen  of  London,  in  great  solemnity  to  the  church  of  Paul, 
there  to  hear  a  declaration  from  the  lord  chancellor,  now  cardinal. 
Wlien  they  were  assembled,  the  cardinal,  standing  upon  the  upper- 
most step,  or  halfpace,  before  the  quire,  and  all  the  nobles,  prelates, 
and  governors  of  the  city  at  the  foot  of  the  stairs,  made  a  speech  to 
them,  letting  them  know  that  they  were  assembled  in  that  consecrated 
place  to  sing  unto  God  a  new  song.  For  that,  said  he,  these  many 
years  the  Christians  have  not  gained  new  ground  or  territory  upon  the 
infidels,  nor  enlarged  and  set  farther  the  bounds  of  the  Christian  world. 
But  this  is  now  done  by  the  prowess  and  devotion  of  Ferdinando  and 
Isabella,  kings  of  Spain ;  who  have,  to  their  immortal  honor,  recov- 
ered the  great  and  rich  kingdom  of  Granada,  and  the  populous  and 
mighty  city  of  the  same  name  from  the  Moors,  having  been  in  pos- 
session tliereof  by  the  space  of  seven  hundred  years,  and  more ;  for 
which  this  assembly  and  all  Christians  are  to  render  laud  and  thanks 
to  God,  and  to  celebrate  this  noble  act  of  the  king  of  Spain ;  who  in 
this  is  not  only  victorious  but  apostolical,  in  the  gaining  of  new  prov- 
inces to  the  Christian  faith.  And  the  rather  for  that  this  victory  and 
conquest  is  obtained  without  much  effusion  of  blood.  Whereby  it  is 
to  be  hoped  that  there  shall  be  gained  not  only  new  territory,  but  in- 
finite souls  to  the  Church  of  Christ,  whom  the  Almighty,  as  it  seems, 
would  have  live  to  be  converted.  Herewithal  he  did  relate  some  of 
the  most  memorable  particulars  of  the  war  and  victory.  And,  after 
his  speech  ended,  the  whole  assembly  went  solemnly  in  procession,  and 
Te  Deum  was  sung."  Lord  Bacon,  History  of  the  Reign  of  King 
Henry  VIL,  in  his  Works  (ed.  London,  1819),  vol.  v.  pp.  85,  86. — See 
also  Hall,  Chronicle,  p.  453. 


X02I 


M^AM   OF  GHANADA. 


in  the  Peninsula,  after  an  existence  of  seven  hundred 
and  forty-one  years  from  the  date  of  the  original  con- 
quest. The  consequences  of  this  closing  war  were  of 
the  highest  moment  to  Spain.  The  most  obvious  was 
the  recovery  of  an  extensive  territory,  hitherto  held  by 
a  people  whose  difference  of  religion,  language,  and 
general  habits  made  them  not  only  incapable  of  assim- 
ilating with  their  Christian  neighbors,  but  almost  their 
natural  enemies ;  while  their  local  position  was  a  matter 
of  just  concern,  as  interposed  between  the  great  divi- 
sions of  the  Spanish  monarchy,  and  opening  an  obvious 
avenue  to  invasion  from  Africa.  By  the  new  con- 
quest, moreover,  the  Spaniards  gained  a  large  extent 
of  country,  possessing  the  highest  capacities  for  pro- 
duction, in  its  natural  fruitfulness  of  soil,  the  tempera- 
ture of  climate,  and  the  state  of  cultivation  to  which  it 
had  been  brought  by  its  ancient  occupants  j  v/hile  its 
shores  were  lined  with  commodious  havens,  that  afforded 
every  facility  for  commerce.  The  scattered  fragments 
of  the  ancient  Visigothio  empire  were  now  again,  with 
the  exception  of  the  little  state  of  Navarre,  combined 
into  one  great  monarchy,  as  originally  destined  by 
nature;  and  Christian  Spain  gradually  rose,  by  means  of 
her  new  acquisitions,  from  a  subordinate  situation  to 
the  level  of  a  first-rate  European  power. 

The  moral  influence  of  the  Moorish  war,  its  influ- 
ence on  the  Spanish  character,  was  highly  important. 
The  inhabitants  of  the  great  divisions  of  the  country, 
as  in  most  countries  during  the  feudal  ages,  had  been 
brought  too  frequently  into  collision  with  each  other 
to  allow  the  existence  of  a  pervading  national  feeling. 
This  was  particularly  the  case  in  Spain,  where  inde- 


SURRENDER    OF  THE   CAPITAL. 


103 


pendent  states  insensibly  grew  out  of  the  detached  frag- 
ments of  territory  recovered  at  different  times  from  the 
Moorish  monarchy.  The  war  of  Granada  subjected 
all  the  various  sections  of  the  country  to  one  common 
action,  under  the  influence  of  common  motives  of  the 
most  exciting  interest  j  while  it  brought  them  in  con- 
flict with  a  race  the  extreme  repugnance  of  whose  insti- 
tutions and  character  to  their  own  served  greatly  to 
nourish  the  nationality  of  sentiment.  In  this  way  the 
spark  of  patriotism  was  kindled  throughout  the  whole 
nation,  and  the  most  distant  provinces  of  the  Penin- 
sula were  knit  together  by  a  bond  of  union  which  has 
remained  indissoluble. 

The  consequences  of  these  wars  in  a  military  aspect 
are  also  worthy  of  notice.  Up  to  this  period,  war  had 
been  carried  on  by  irregular  levies,  extremely  limited 
in  numerical  amount  and  in  period  of  service,  under 
little  subordination,  except  to  their  own  immediate 
chiefs,  and  wholly  unprovided  with  the  apparatus  re- 
quired for  extended  operations.  The  Spaniards  were 
even  lower  than  most  of  the  European  nations  in  mili- 
tary science,  as  is  apparent  from  the  infinite  pains  of 
Isabella  to  avail  herself  of  all  foreign  resources  for  their 
improvement.  In  the  war  of  Granada,  masses  of  men 
were  brought  together  far  greater  than  had  hitherto 
been  known  in  modern  warfare.  They  were  kept  in 
the  field  not  only  through  long  campaigns,  but  far  into 
the  winter ;  a  thing  altogether  unprecedented.  They 
were  made  to  act  in  concert,  and  the  numerous  petty 
chiefs  brought  into  complete  subjection  to  one  common 
head,  whose  personal  character  enforced  the  authority 
of  station.     Lastly,  they  were  supplied  with  all  the 


I04 


kyA/i   OF  GKAiVADA. 


requisite  munitions,  through  the  providence  of  Isabella, 
who  introduced  into  the  service  the  most  skilful  engi- 
neers from  other  countries,  and  kept  in  pay  bodies  of 
mercenaries, — as  the  Swiss,  for  example,  reputed  the 
best  disciplined  troops  of  that  day.  In  this  admirable 
school  the  Spanish  soldier  was  gradually  trained  to 
patient  endurance,  fortitude,  and  thorough  subordina- 
tion ;  and  those  celebrated  captains  were  formed,  with 
that  invincible  infantry,  which  in  the  beginning  of  the 
sixteenth  century  spread  the  military  fame  of  their 
country  over  all  Christendom. 

But,  with  all  our  sympathy  for  the  conquerprs,  it  is 
impossible  without  a  deep  feeling  of  regre'.  to  con- 
template the  decay  and  final  extinction  of  a  race  who 
had  made  such  high  advances  in  civilization  as  the 
Spanish  Arabs;  to  see  them  driven  from  the  stately 
palaces  reared  by  their  own  hands,  wandering  as  exiles 
over  the  lands  which  still  blossomed  with  the  fruits  of 
their  industry,  and  wasting  away  under  persecution, 
until  their  very  name  as  a  nation  was  blotted  out  from 
the  map  of  history.**  It  must  be  admitted,  however, 
that  they  had  long  since  reached  their  utmost  limit  of 
advancement  as  a  people.  The  light  shed  over  their 
history  shines  from  distant  ages ;  for  during  the  later 
period  of  their  existence  they  appear  to  have  reposed 
in  a  state  of  torpid,  luxurious  indulgence,  which  would 
seem  to  argue  that,  when  causes  of  external  excite- 
ment were  withdrawn,  the  inherent  vices  of  their  social 

■«  The  African  descendants  of  the  Spanish  Moors,  unable  wholly  to 
relinquish  the  hope  of  restoration  to  the  delicious  abodes  of  their  an- 
cestors, continued  for  many  generations,  and  perhaps  still  continue,  to 
put  up  a  petition  to  that  effect  in  their  mosques  every  Friday.  Pedraza, 
Antigijedad  de  Granada,  fol.  7. 


SUKKJINDER   OF  THE   CAPITAL. 


105 


institutions  had  incapacitated  them  for  the  further  pro. 
duction  of  excellence  In  this  impotent  condition,  it 
was  wisely  ordered  that  their  territory  should  be  occu- 
pied by  a  people  whose  religion  and  more  liberal  form 
of  government,  however  frequently  misunderstood  or 
perverted,  qualified  them  for  advancing  still  higher  the 
interests  of  humanity. 

It  will  not  be  amiss  to  terminate  the  narrative  of  the 
war  of  Granada  with  some  notice  of  the  fate  of  Rod- 
rigo  Ponce  de  Leon,  marquis  duke  of  Cadiz;  for  he 
may  be  regarded  in  a  peculiar  manner  as  the  hero  of 
it,  having  struck  the  first  stroke  by  the  surprise  of  Al- 
hama,  and  witnessed  every  campaign  till  the  surrender 
of  Granada.  A  circumstantial  account  of  his  last  mo^ 
ments  is  afforded  by  the  pen  of  his  worthy  countryman, 
the  Andalusian  Curate  of  Los  Palacios.  The  gallant 
marquis  survived  the  close  of  the  war  only  a  short  time, 
terminating  his  days  at  his  mansion  in  Seville,  on  the 
28lh  of  August,  1492,  by  a  disorder  brought  on  by 
fatigue  and  incessant  exposure.  He  had  reached  the 
forty-ninth  year  of  his  age,  and,  although  twice  mar- 
ried, left  no  legitimate  issue.  In  his  person  he  was  of 
about  the  middle  stature,  of  a  compact,  symmetrical 
frame,  a  fair  complexion,  with  light  hair  inclining  to 
red.  He  was  an  excellent  horseman,  and  well  skilled 
in  most  of  the  exercises  of  chivalry.  He  had  the  rare 
merit  of  combining  sagacity  with  intrepidity  in  action. 
Though  somewhat  impatient,  and  slow  to  forgive,  he 
was  frank  and  generous,  a  warm  friend,  and  a  kind 
master  to  his  vassals."* 

"S  Carbajal,  Anales,  MS.,  afio  1492. — Don  Henrique  de  Guzman, 
duke  of  Medina  Sidonia,  the  ancient  enemy,  and,  since  the  commence- 

E» 


to6 


PVA/i   OF  GRANADA. 


He  was  strict  in  his  observance  of  the  Catholic  wor- 
ship, punctilious  in  keeping  all  the  church  festivals  and 
in  enforcing  their  observance  throughout  his  domains ; 
and  in  war  he  was  a  most  devout  champion  of  the 
Virgin.  He  was  ambitious  of  acquisitions,  but  lavish 
in  expenditure,  especially  in  the  embellishment  and 
fortification  of  his  towns  and  castles;  spending  on 
Alcala  de  Guadaira,  Xerez,  and  Alanis,  the  enormous 
sum  of  seventeen  million  maravedis.  To  the  ladies  he 
was  courteous,  as  became  a  true  knight.  At  his  death, 
the  king  and  queen  with  the  whole  court  went  into 
mourning;  "for  he  was  a  much-loved  cavalier,"  says 
the  Curate,  "  and  was  esteemed,  like  the  Cid,  both  by 
friend  and  foe ;  and  no  Moor  durst  abide  in  that  quarter 
of  the  field  where  his  banner  was  displayed." 

His  body,  after  lying  in  state  for  several  days  in  his 
palace  at  Seville,  with  his  trusty  sword  by  his  side,  with 
which  he  had  fought  all  his  battles,  was  borne  in  solemn 
procession  by  night  through  the  streets  of  the  city,  which 
was  everywhere  filled  with  the  deepest  lamentation,  and 
was  finally  deposited  in  the  great  chapel  of  the  Augustine 
church,  in  the  tomb  of  his  ancestors.  Ten  Moorish 
banners,  which  he  had  taken  in  battle  with  the  infidel 
before  the  war  of  Granada,  were  borne  along  at  his 
funeral,  "and  still  wave  over  his  sepulchre,"  says  Ber- 
naldez,  "keeping  alive  the  memory  of  his  exploits,  as 
undying  as  his  soul."  The  banners  have  long  since 
mouldered  into  dust ;  the  very  tomb  which  contained 
his  ashes  has  been  sacrilegiously  demolished ;  but  the 
fame  of  the  hero  will  survive  as  long  as  any  thing  like 

ment  of  the  Moorish  war,  the  firm  friend,  of  the  marquis  of  Cadii, 
died  the  28th  of  August,  on  the  same  day  with  the  latter. 


SURRENDER   OF  THE   CAPITAL, 


107 


respect  for  valor,  courtesy,  unblemished  honor,  or  any 
other  attribute  of  chivalry,  shall  be  found  in  Spain.** 

«*  Zufiiga,  Annates  de  Sevilla,  p.  411. — Bernaldez,  Reyes  Cat6licos, 
MS.,  cap.  104.  The  marquis  left  three  illegitimate  daughters  by  a 
noble  Spanish  lady,  who  all  formed  high  connections.  He  was  suc- 
ceeded in  his  titles  and  estates,  by  the  permission  of  Ferdinand  and 
Isabella,  by  Don  Rodrigo  Ponce  de  Leon,  the  son  of  his  eldest  daughter, 
who  had  married  with  one  of  her  kinsmen.  Cadiz  was  subsequently 
annexed  by  the  Spanish  sovereigns  to  the  crown,  from  which  it  had 
been  detached  in  Henry  IV.'s  time,  and  considerable  estates  were  given 
as  an  equivalent,  together  with  the  title  of  Duke  of  Arcos,  to  the  family 
of  Ponce  de  Leon. 


One  of  the  chief  authorities  on  which  the  account  of  the  Moorish 
war  rests  is  Andres  Bernaldez,  Curate  of  L.,os  Palacios.  He  was  a 
native  of  Fuente  in  Leon,  and  appears  to  have  received  his  early  edu- 
cation under  the  care  of  his  grandfather,  a  notary  of  that  place,  whose 
commendations  of  a  juvenile  essay  in  historical  writing  led  him  later 
in  life,  according  to  his  own  account,  to  record  the  events  of  his  time 
in  the  extended  and  regular  form  of  a  chronicle.  After  admission  to 
orders,  he  was  made  chaplain  to  Deza,  archbishop  of  Seville,  and  curate 
of  Los  Palacios,  an  Andalusian  town  not  far  from  Seville,  where  he 
discharged  his  ecclesiastical  functions  with  credit  from  1488  to  1513, 
at  which  time,  as  we  find  no  later  mention  of  him,  he  probably  closed 
his  life  with  his  labors. 

Bernaldez  had  ample  opportunities  for  accurate  information  relative 
to  the  Moorish  war,  since  he  lived,  as  it  were,  in  the  theatre  of  action, 
and  was  personally  intimate  with  the  most  considerable  men  of  Anda- 
lusia, especially  the  marquis  of  Cadiz,  whom  he  has  made  the  Achilles 
of  his  epic,  assigning  him  a  much  more  important  part  in  the  principal 
transactions  than  is  always  warranted  by  other  authorities.  His  chron- 
icle is  just  such  as  might  have  been  anticipated  from  a  person  of  lively 
imagination,  and  competent  scholarship  for  the  time,  deeply  dyed  with 
the  bigotry  and  superstition  of  the  Spanish  clergy  in  that  century. 
There  is  no  great  discrimination  apparent  in  the  work  of  the  worthy 
curate,  who  dwells  with  goggle-eyed  credulity  on  the  most  absurd 
marvels,  and  expends  more  pages  on  an  empty  court  show  than  on  the 
most  important  schemes  of  policy.   But,  if  he  is  no  philosopher,  he  has. 


io8 


WAH   OF  GRANADA. 


!ii 


]  i 


perhaps  for  that  very  reason,  succeeded  in  making  us  completely  master 
of  the  popular  feelings  and  prejudices  of  the  time ;  while  he  gives  9 
most  vivid  portraiture  of  the  principal  scenes  and  actors  in  this  stirring 
war,  with  all  their  chivalrous  exploit  and  rich  theatrical  accompaniment. 
His  credulity  and  fanaticism,  moreover,  are  well  compensated  by  a  sim- 
plicity and  loyalty  of  purpose  which  secure  much  more  credit  to  his 
narrative  than  attaches  to  those  of  more  ambitious  writers,  whose  judg- 
ment is  perpetually  swayed  by  personal  or  party  interests.  The  chron- 
icle descends  as  late  as  15 13,  although,  as  might  be  expected  from  the 
author's  character,  it  is  entitled  to  much  less  confidence  in  the  discus- 
sion of  events  which  fell  without  the  scope  of  his  personal  observation. 
Notwithstanding  its  historical  value  is  fully  recognized  by  the  Castilian 
critics,  it  has  never  been  admitted  to  the  press,  but  still  remains  in- 
gulfed in  the  ocean  of  manuscripts  with  which  the  Spanish  libraries  are 
deluged. 

It  is  remarkable  that  the  war  of  Granada,  which  is  so  admirably  suited 
in  all  its  circumstances  to  poetical  purposes,  should  not  have  been  more 
frequently  commemorated  by  the  epic  muse.  The  only  successful 
attempt  in  this  way  with  which  I  am  acquainted  is  the  "  Conquisto  di 
Granata,"  by  the  Florentine  Girolamo  Gratiani,  Modena,  1650.  The 
author  has  taken  the  license,  independently  of  his  machinery,  of  devi- 
ating very  freely  from  the  historic  track ;  among  other  things,  intro- 
ducing Columbus  and  the  Great  Captain  as  principal  actors  in  the 
drama,  in  which  they  played  at  most  but  a  very  subordinate  part.  The 
poem,  which  swells  into  twenty-six  cantos,  is  in  such  repute  with  the 
Italian  critics  that  Quadrio  does  not  hesitate  to  rank  it  "among  the 
best  epical  productions  of  the  age."  A  translation  of  this  work  has 
recently  appeared  at  Nuremberg,  from  the  pen  of  C.  M.  Winterling, 
which  is  much  commended  by  the  German  critics. 

Mr.  Irving's  late  publication,  the  "  Chronicle  of  the  Conquest  of 
Granada,"  has  superseded  all  further  necessity  for  poetry,  and,  unfor- 
tunately for  me,  for  history.  He  has  fully  availed  himself  of  all  the 
picturesque  and  animating  movements  of  this  romantic  era ;  and  the 
reader  who  will  take  the  trouble  to  compare  his  Chronicle  with  the 
present  more  prosaic  and  literal  narrative  will  see  how  little  he  has 
been  seduced  from  historic  accuracy  by  the  poetical  aspect  of  his  sub- 
ject. The  fictitious  and  romantic  dress  of  his  work  has  enabled  him 
to  make  it  the  medium  for  reflecting  more  vividly  the  floating  opinions 
and  chimerical  fancies  of  the  age,  while  lie  has  illuminated  the  picture 
with  the  dramatic  brilliancy  of  coloring  denied  to  sober  history. 


CHAPTER   XVI. 

APPLICATION  OF  CHRISTOPHER  COLUMBUS  AT  THE 
SPANISH  COURT. 


1492. 

Eiarly  Discoveries  of  the  Portuguese. — Of  the  Spaniards. — Columbus. 
— His  Application  at  the  Castilian  Court. — Rejected. — Negotiations 
resumed. — Favorable  Disposition  of  the  Queen. — Arrangement  with 
Columbus.—  He  sails  on  his  first  Voyage. — Indifference  to  the  Enter- 
prise.— Acknowledgments  due  to  Isabella. 

While  Ferdinand  and  Isabella  were  at  Santa  Fe, 
the  capitulation  was  signed  that  opened  the  way  to  an 
extent  of  empire  compared  with  which  their  recent 
conquests,  and  indeed  all  their  present  dominions,  were 
insignificant.  The  extraordinary  intellectual  activity 
of  the  Europeans  in  the  fifteenth  century,  after  the 
torpor  of  ages,  carried  them  forward  to  high  advance- 
ment in  almost  every  department  of  science,  but  espe- 
cially nautical,  whose  surprising  results  have  acquired 
for  the  age  the  glory  of  being  designated  as  peculiarly 
that  of  maritime  discovery.  This  was  eminently  favored 
by  the  political  condition  of  modern  Europe.  Under 
the  Roman  empire,  the  traffic  with  the  East  naturally 
centred  in  Rome,  the  commercial  capital  of  the  West. 
After  the  dismemberment  of  the  empire,  it  continued 
to  be  conducted  principally  through  the  channel  of  the 
Italian  ports,  whence  it  was  diffused  over  the  remoter 

(109) 


no 


CHRISTOPHER   COL  UMB US. 


i  \ 


m  \ 


regions  of  Christendom.  But  these  countries,  which 
had  now  risen  from  the  rank  of  subordinate  provinces 
to  that  of  separate,  independent  states,  viewed  with 
jealousy  this  monopoly  of  the  Italian  cities,  by  means 
of  which  the  latter  were  rapidly  advancing  beyond 
them  in  power  and  opulence.  This  was  especially  the 
case  with  Portugal  and  Castile,*  which,  placed  on  the 
remote  frontiers  of  the  European  continent,  were  far 
removed  from  the  great  routes  of  Asiatic  intercourse ; 
while  this  disadvantage  was  not  compensated  by  such 
an  extent  of  territory  as  secured  consideration  to  some 
other  of  the  European  states,  equally  unfavorably  situ- 
ated for  commercial  purposes  with  themselves.  Thus 
circumstanced,  the  two  nations  of  Castile  and  Portugal 
were  naturally  led  to  turn  their  eyes  on  the  great  ocean 
which  washed  their  western  borders,  and  to  seek  in  its 
hitherto  unexplored  recesses  for  new  domains,  and,  if 
possible,  strike  out  some  undiscovered  track  towards 
the  opulent  regions  of  the  East. 

The  spirit  of  maritime  enterprise  was  fomented,  and 
greatly  facilitated  in  its  operation,  by  the  invention  of 
the  astrolabe,  and  the  important  discovery  of  the  po- 
larity of  the  magnet,  whose  first  application  to  the  pur- 
poses of  navigation  on  an  extended  scale  may  be  referred 
to  the  fifteenth  century.'    The  Portuguese  were  the  first 


«  Aragon,  or  rather  Catalonia,  maintained  an  extensile  commerce 
with  the  Levant,  and  the  remote  regions  of  the  East,  during  the  Middle 
Ages,  through  the  flourishing  port  of  Barcelona.  See  Capmany  y  Mont- 
palau,  Memorias  historicas  sobre  la  Marina,  Comercio  y  Artes  de  Bar- 
celona (Madrid,  1779-92),  passim. 

«  A  coimcil  of  mathematicians  in  the  court  of  John  II.  of  Portugal 
first  devised  the  application  of  the  ancient  astrolabe  to  navigation, 
thus  affording  to  the  mariner  the  essential  advantages  appertaining  to 


tllS  APPLICATION  AT  THE  COURT.        m 

to  enter  on  the  brilliant  path  of  nautical  discovery, 
which  they  pursued  under  the  infant  Don  Henry  with 
such  activity  that  before  the  middle  of  the  fifteenth 
century  they  had  penetrated  as  far  as  Cape  de  Verd, 
doubling  many  a  fearful  headland  which  had  shut  in 
the  timid  navigator  of  former  days;  until  at  length,  in 
i486,  they  descried  the  lofty  promontory  which  termi- 
nates Africa  on  the  south,  and  which,  hailed  by  King 
John  the  Second,  under  whom  it  was  discovered,  as 
the  harbinger  of  the  long-sought  passage  to  the  East, 
received  the  cheering  appellation  of  the  Cape  of  Good 
Hope. 

The  Spaniards,  in  the  mean  while,  did  not  languish 
in  the  career  of  maritime  enterprise.  Certain  adven- 
turers from  the  northern  provinces  of  Biscay  and  Gui- 
puscoa^  in  1393,  had  made  themselves  masters  of  one 

the  modem  quadrant.  The  discovery  of  the  polarity  of  the  needle, 
which  vulgar  tradition,  sanctioned  without  scruple  by  Robertson,  as- 
signed to  the  Amalfite  Flavio  Gioja,  is  clearly  proved  to  have  occurred 
more  than  a  century  earlier.  Tiraboschi,  who  investigates  the  matter 
with  his  usual  erudition,  passing  by  the  doubtful  reference  of  Guiot 
de  Provins,  whose  age  and  personal  identity  even  are  contested,  traces 
the  familiar  use  of  the  magnetic  needle  as  far  back  as  the  first  half  of 
the  thirteenth  century,  by  a  pertinent  passage  from  Cardinal  Vitri,  who 
died  in  1244,  and  sustains  this  by  several  similar  references  to  other 
authors  of  the  sam^  century.  Capmany  finds  no  notice  of  its  use  by 
the  Castilian  navigators  earlier  than  1403.  It  was  not  until  consider- 
ably later  in  the  fifteenth  century  that  the  Portuguese  Voyagers,  trust- 
ing to  its  guidance,  ventured  to  quit  the  Mediterranean  and  African 
coasts  and  extend  their  navigation  to  Madeira  and  the  Azores.  See 
Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  los  Viages  y  Descubrimientos  que  hicieron 
per  Mar  los  Espafiolea  (Madrid,  1825-29),  torn,  i.,  introd.,  sec.  33. — 
Tiraboschi,  Letteratura  Italiana,  tom.  iv.  pp.  173,  174. — Capmany, 
Mem.  de  Barcelona,  tom.  iii.  part,  i,  cap.  4. — Koch,  Tableau  des  Revo- 
lutions de  I'Europe  (Paris,  1814),  tom,  i.  pp.  358-360. 


113 


CHRISTOPHER   COLUMBUS. 


of  the  smallest  of  the  group  of  islands  supposed  to  be 
the  Fortunate  Isles  of  the  ancients,  since  known  as  the 
Canaries.  Other  private  adventurers  from  Seville  ex- 
tended their  conquests  over  these  islands  in  the  begin- 
ning of  the  following  century.  These  were  completed 
in  behalf  of  the  crown  under  Ferdinand  and  Isabella, 
who  equipped  several  fleets  for  their  reduction,  which 
at  length  terminated  in  1495  "^^^^'^'^  that  of  Teneriffe.' 
From  the  commencement  of  their  reign,  Ferdinand 
and  Isabella  had  shown  an  earnest  solicitude  for  the 
encouragement  of  commerce  and  nautical  science,  as 
is  evinced  by  a  variety  of  regulations,  which,  however 
imperfect  from  the  misconception  of  the  true  princi- 
ples of  trade  in  that  day,  are  sufficiently  indicative  of 
the  dispositions  of  the  government.*    Under  them,  and 

3  Four  of  the  islands  were  conquered  on  behalf  of  private  adven- 
turers chiefly  from  Andalusia,  before  the  accession  of  Ferdinand  and 
Isabella,  and  under  their  reign  were  held  as  the  property  of  a  noble 
Castilian  family,  named  Peraza.  The  sovereigns  sent  a  considerable 
armament  from  Seville  in  1480,  which  subdued  the  great  island  of 
Canary  on  behalf  of  the  crown,  and  another  in  1493,  which  effected 
the  reduction  of  Palma  and  Teneriffe  after  a  sturdy  resistance  from 
the  natives.  Bemaldez  postpones  the  last  conquest  to  1495.  Salazar 
de  Mendoza,  Monarqufa,  tom.  i.  pp.  347-349. — Pulgar,  Reyes  Cat61icos, 
pp.  136, 203. — Bemaldez,  Reyes  Cat61icos,  MS.,  cap.  64,  65,  66, 133. — 
Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Viages,  tom.  i.,  intrcd.,  sec.  28. 

4  Among  the  provisions  of  the  sovereigns  enacted  previous  to  the 
present  date  may  be  noted  those  for  regulating  the  coin  and  weights  ; 
for  opening  a  free  trade  between  Castile  and  Aragon ;  for  security  to 
Genoese  and  Venetian  trading-vessels ;  for  safe  conduct  to  mariners 
and  fishermen ;  for  privileges  to  the  seamen  of  Palos ;  for  prohibiting 
the  plunder  of  vessels  wrecked  on  the  coast ;  and  an  ordinance  of  the 
very  last  year,  requiring  foreigners  to  take  their  return  cargoes  in  the 
products  of  the  country. — See  these  laws,  as  extracted  from  the  Orde- 
Qan9as  Reales  and  the  various  public  archives,  in  Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de 
Hist.,  tom.  vi.  liust.  11. 


1 


HIS  APPLICATION  AT  THE   COURT. 


"3 


indeed  under  their  predecessors  as  far  back  as  Henry 
the  Third,  a  considerable  traffic  had  been  carried  on 
with  the  western  coast  f^'  Africa,  from  which  gold-dust 
and  slaves  were  imported  into  the  city  of  Seville.  The 
annalist  of  that  city  notices  the  repeated  interference 
of  Isabella  in  behalf  of  these  unfortunate  beings,  by 
ordinances  tending  to  secure  them  a  more  equal  pro- 
tection of  the  laws,  or  opening  such  social  indulgences 
as  might  mitigate  the  hardships  of  their  condition.  A 
misunderstanding  gradually  arose  between  the  subjects 
of  Castile  and  Portugal,  in  relation  to  their  respective 
rights  of  discovery  and  commerce  on  the  African  coast, 
which  promised  a  fruitful  source  of  collision  between 
the  two  crowns,  but  which  was  happily  adjusted  by  an 
article  in  the  treaty  of  1479,  ^^^  terminated  the  war 
of  the  succession.  By  this  it  was  settled  that  the 
right  of  traffic  and  of  discovery  on  the  western  coast  of 
Africa  should  be  exclusively  reserved  to  the  Portuguese, 
who  in  their  turn  should  resign  all  claims  on  the  Ca- 
naries to  the  crown  of  Castile.  The  Spaniards,  thus 
excluded  from  further  progress  to  the  south,  seemed  to 
have  no  other  opening  left  for  naval  adventure  than 
the  hitherto  untravelled  regions  of  the  great  western 
ocean.  Fortunately,  at  this  juncture  an  individual 
appeared  among  them,  in  the  person  of  Christopher 
Columbus,  endowed  with  capacity  for  stimulating 
them  to  this  heroic  enterprise  and  conducting  it  to  a 
glorious  issue. s 

This  extraordinary  man  was  a  native  of  Genoa,  of 

S  Zuniga,  Annales  de  Sevilla,  pp.  373,  374,  398. — Zurita,  Anales, 
torn.  iv.  lib.  20,  cap.  30,  34. — Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Viages,  torn,  i., 
introd.,  sec.  21,  24. — Ferreras,  Hist.  d'Elspagne,  fom.  vii.  p  548. 
Vol.  II.— 8 


114 


CHRISTOPHER  COLUMBUS. 


humble  parentage,  though  perhaps  honorable  descent.* 
He  was  instructed  in  his  early  youth  at  Pavia,  where  he 
acquired  a  strong  relish  for  the  mathematical  sciences, 
in  which  he  subsequently  excelled.  At  the  age  of 
fourteen  he  engaged  in  a  seafaring  life,  which  he  fol- 
lowed with  little  intermission  till  1470;  when,  probably 
little  more  than  thirty  years  of  age,'  he  landed  in  Por- 


*  Spotorno,  Memorials  of  Columbus  (London,  1823),  p.  14. — Sena- 
rega,  apud  Muratori,  Rerum  Ital.  Script.,  torn.  xxiv.  p.  535. — Antonio 
Gallo,  De  Navigatione  Columbi,  apud  Muratori,  Rerum  Ital.  Script., 
torn,  xxiii.  p.  202. — It  is  very  generally  agreed  that  the  father  of  Co- 
lumbus exercised  the  craft  of  a  wool-carder,  or  weaver.  The  admiral's 
son,  Ferdinand,  after  some  speculation  on  the  genealogy  of  his  illus- 
trious parent,  concludes  with  remarking  that,  after  all,  a  noble  de- 
scent would  confer  less  lustre  on  him  than  to  have  sprung  from  such 
a  father ;  a  philosophical  sentiment,  indicating  pretty  strongly  that  he 
had  no  great  ancestry  to  boast  of.  Ferdinand  finds  something  ex- 
tremely mysterious  and  typical  in  his  father's  name  of  Columbus,  signi- 
fying a  dove,  in  token  of  his  being  ordained  to  "  carry  the  olive-branch 
and  oil  of  baptism  over  the  ocean,  like  Noah's  dove,  to  denote  the 
peace  and  union  of  the  heathen  people  with  the  church,  after  they  had 
been  shut  up  in  the  ark  of  darkness  and  confusion."  Fernando  Colon, 
Historia  del  Almirante,  cap.  i,  2,  apud  Barcia,  Historiadores  primitivos 
de  las  Indias  occidentales  (Madrid,  1749),  ^<3<°-  >■ 

7  Bernaldez,  Reyes  Catdlicos,  MS.,  cap.  131. — MuAoz,  Historic  del 
Nuevo-Mundo  (Madrid,  1793),  lib.  2,  sec.  13. — There  are  no  sufficient 
data  for  determining  the  period  of  Columbus's  birth.  The  learned 
Muiioz  places  it  in  1446.  (Hist,  del  Nuevo-Mundo,  lib.  s,  sec.  12.) 
Navarrete,  who  has  weighed  the  various  authorities  with  caution,  seems 
inclined  to  remove  it  back  eight  or  ten  years  further,  resting  chiefly  on  a 
remark  of  Bernaldez,  that  he  died  in  1506,  "in  a  good  old  age,  at  the 
age  of  seventy,  a  little  more  or  less,"  (Cap.  131,)  The  expression  is 
somewhat  vague.  In  order  to  reconcile  the  facts  with  this  hypothesis, 
Navarrete  is  compelled  to  reject,  as  a  chirographical  blunder,  a  passage 
in  a  letter  of  the  admiral,  placing  his  birth  in  1456,  and  to  distort  another 
passage  in  his  book  of  "  Prophecies,"  which,  if  literally  taken,  would 
eecn  to  establish  hib  birth  near  the  time  assigned  by  Muiioz.    Inci> 


HIS  APPLICATION  AT  THE   COURT. 


"5 


tugal,  the  country  to  which  adventurous  spirits  from 
all  parts  of  the  world  then  resorted,  as  the  great  theatre 
of  maritime  enterprise.  After  his  arrival,  he  continued 
to  make  voyages  to  the  then  known  parts  of  the  world, 
and,  when  on  shore,  occupied  himself  with  the  con- 
struction and  sale  of  charts  and  maps ;  while  his  geo- 
graphical researches  were  considerably  aided  by  the 
possession  of  papers  belonging  to  an  eminent  Portu- 
guese navigator,  a  deceased  relative  of  his  wife.  Thus 
stored  with  all  that  nautical  science  in  that  day  could 
supply,  and  fortified  by  large  practical  experience,  the 
reflecting  mind  of  Columbus  was  naturally  led  to 
speculate  on  the  existence  of  some  other  land  beyond 
the  western  waters ;  and  he  conceived  the  possibility 
of  reaching  the  eastern  shores  of  Asia,  whose  provinces 
of  Zipango  and  Cathay  were  emblazoned  in  such  gor- 
geous colors  in  the  narratives  of  Mandeville  and  the 
Poll,  by  a  more  direct  and  commodious  route  than  that 
which  traversed  the  Eastern  continent.' 

dental  allusions  in  some  other  authorities,  speaking  of  Columbus's  old 
age  at  or  near  the  time  of  his  death,  strongly  corroborate  Navarrete's 
inference.  (See  Coleccion  de  Viages,  torn,  i,,  introd.,  sec.  54.) — Mr. 
Irving  seems  willing  to  rely  exclusively  on  the  authority  of  Bemaldez. 
B  Antonio  de  Herrera,  Historia  general  de  las  Indias  occidentales 
(Amberes,  1728),  torn.  i.  dec.  i,  lib.  i,  cap.  7. — Gomara,  Historia  de 
las  Indias,  cap.  14,  apud  Barcia,  Hist,  primitivos,  torn.  ii. — Bernaldez, 
Reyes  Cat61icos,  MS.,  cap.  118. — Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Viages,  tom. 
i.,  introd.,  sec.  30. — Ferdinand  Columbus  enumerates  three  grounds  on 
which  his  father's  conviction  of  land  in  the  west  was  founded.  First, 
natural  reason, — or  conclusions  drawn  from  science ;  secondly,  autho- 
rity of  writers, — amounting  to  little  more  than  vague  speculations  of  the 
ancients ;  thirdly,  testimony  of  sailors,  comprehending,  in  addition  to 
popular  rumors  of  land  described  in  western  voyages,  such  relics  as 
appeared  to  have  floated  to  the  European  shores  from  the  other  side 
of  the  Atlantic.    Hist,  del  Almirante,  cap.  6-8. 


ii6 


CHRISTOPHER   COL  UMB US. 


The  existence  of  land  beyond  the  Atlantic,  which 
was  not  discredited  by  some  of  the  most  enlightened 
ancients,*  had  become  matter  of  common  speculation 
at  the  close  of  the  fifteenth  century,  when  maritime 
adventure  was  daily  disclosing  the  mysteries  of  the 
deep,  and  bringing  to  light  new  regions,  that  had 
hitherto  existed  only  in  fancy.  A  proof  of  this  popular 
belief  occurs  in  a  curious  passage  of  the  ''Morgante 
Maggiore' '  of  the  Florentine  poet  Pulci,  a  man  of  letters, 
but  not  distinguished  for  scientific  attainments  beyond 
his  day."*  The  passage  is  remarkable,  inuependently 
of  the  cosmographical  knowledge  it  implies,  for  its 
allusion  to  phenomena  in  physical  science  not  estab- 
lished  till   more   than   a  century  later.     The  Devil, 


9  None  of  the  intimations  are  so  precise  as  that  contained  in  the  well- 
known  lines  of  Seneca's  Medea, 

"  Venient  annis  sxcula,"  etc., 

although,  when  regarded  as  a  mere  poetical  vagary,  it  has  not  the 
weight  which  belongs  to  more  serious  suggestions,  of  similar  import, 
in  the  writings  of  Aristotle  and  Strabo.  The  various  allusions  in  the 
ancient  classic  writers  to  an  undiscovered  world  form  the  subject  of  an 
elaborate  essay  in  the  Memorias  da  Acad.  Real  das  Sciencias  de  Lisboa 
(torn.  V.  pp.  101-112),  and  are  embodied  in  much  greater  detail  in  the 
first  section  of  Humboldt's  "  Histoire  de  la  Geographic  du  nouveau 
Continent ;"  a  work  in  which  the  author,  with  his  usual  acuteness,  has 
successfully  applied  the  vast  stores  of  his  erudition  and  experience  to 
the  illustration  of  many  interesting  points  connected  with  the  discovery 
of  the  New  World,  and  the  personal  history  of  Columbus. 

"  It  is  probably  the  knowledge  of  this  which  has  led  some  writers  to 
impute  part  of  his  work  to  the  learned  Marsilio  Ficino,  and  others,  with 
still  less  charity  and  probability,  to  refer  the  authorship  of  the  whole  to 
Politian.  Comp.  Tasso,  Opere  (Venezia,  1735-42),  torn.  x.  p.  129; 
and  Crescimbeni,  Istoria  della  volgar  Poesia  (Venezia,  1731),  torn.  iii. 
pp.  273,  274. 


I//S  APPLICATION  AT  THE   COURT. 


117 


alluding  to  the  vulgar  superstition  respecting  the  Pillars 
of  Hercules,  thus  addresses  his  companion  Rinaldo : 

"  Know  that  this  theory  is  false ;  his  bark 
The  daring  mariner  shall  urge  far  o'er 
The  western  wave,  a  smooth  and  level  plain, 
Albeit  the  earth  is  fashioned  like  a  wheel. 
Man  was  in  ancient  days  of  grosser  mould, 
And  Hercules  might  blush  to  learn  how  far 
Beyond  the  limits  he  had  vainly  set. 
The  dullest  sea-boat  soon  shall  wing  her  way. 
Men  shall  descry  another  hemisphere. 
Since  to  one  common  centre  all  things  tend. 
So  earth,  by  curious  mystery  divine 
Well  balanced,  hangs  amid  the  starry  spheres. 
At  our  Antipodes  are  cities,  states. 
And  thronged  empires,  ne'er  divined  of  yore. 
But  see,   he  Sun  speeds  on  his  western  path 
To  glad  tike  nations  with  expected  light."*' 

Columbus's  hypothesis  rested  on  much  stronger 
ground  than  mere  popular  belief.  What  indeed  was 
credulity  with  the  vulgar,  and  speculation  with  the 
learned,  amounted  in  his  mind  to  a  settled  practical 
conviction,  that  made  him  ready  to  peril  life  and  for- 


"  Pulci,  Morgante  Maggiore,  canto  25,  st.  229,  230. — I  have  used 
blank  verse,  as  affording  facility  for  a  more  literal  version  than  the 
corresponding  ottava  rima  of  the  original.  This  passage  of  Pulci,  which 
has  not  fallen  under  the  notice  of  Humboldt,  or  any  other  writer  on  the 
same  subject  whom  I  have  consulted,  affords,  probably,  the  most  cir- 
cumstantial prediction  that  is  to  be  found  of  the  existence  of  a  western 
world.  Dante,  two  centuries  before,  had  intimated  more  vaguely  his 
belief  in  an  undiscovered  quarter  of  the  globe ; 

"  De'  vostri  sens),  ch'  h  del  rimaiiente, 
Non  vogliatb  negar  I'esperienza, 
Diretro  al  sol,  del  mondo  senza  gente." 

Inferno,  cant.  26,  v.  115. 


xi8 


CHRISTOPHER   COL  UMB US. 


tune  on  the  result  of  the  experiment.  He  was  fortified 
still  further  in  his  conclusions  by  a  correspondence  with 
the  learned  Italian  Toscanelli,  who  furnished  him  with 
a  map  of  his  own  projection,  in  which  the  eastern  coast 
of  Asia  was  delineated  opposite  to  the  western  frontier 
of  Europe." 

Filled  with  lofty  anticipations  of  achieving  a  dis- 
covery which  would  settle  a  question  of  such  moment, 
so  long  involved  in  obscurity,  Columbus  submitted  the 
theory  on  which  he  had  founded  his  belief  in  the 
existence  of  a  western  route  to  King  John  the  Second 
of  Portugal.  Here  he  was  doomed  to  encounter  for 
the  first  time  the  embarrassments  and  mortifications 
which  so  often  obstruct  the  conceptions  of  genius,  too 
sublime  for  the  age  in  which  they  are  formed.  After 
a  long  and  fruitless  negotiation,  and  a  dishonorable  at- 
tempt on  the  part  of  the  Portuguese  to  avail  themselves 
clandestinely  of  his  information,  he  quitted  Lisbon  in 

"  Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Viages,  torn,  ii.,  Col.  dipl,,  no.  i. — Mufioz, 
Hist,  del  Nuevo-Mundc,  iib.  2,  see.  17. — It  is  singular  that  Columbus, 
in  his  visit  to  Ireland  in  1477  (see  Fernando  Colon,  Hist,  del  Almi- 
rante,  cap.  4),  should  have  learned  nothing  of  the  Scandinavian  voyages 
to  the  northern  shores  of  America  in  the  tenth  and  following  centuries ; 
yet  if  he  was  acquainted  with  them  it  appears  equally  surprising  that 
he  should  not  have  adduced  the  fact  in  support  of  his  own  hypothesis 
of  the  existence  of  land  in  the  west,  and  that  he  should  have  taken  a 
route  so  different  from  that  of  his  predecessors  in  the  path  of  discovery. 
It  may  be,  however,  as  M.  de  Humboldt  has  well  remarked,  that  the 
information  he  obtained  in  Iceland  was  too  vague  to  suggest  the  idea 
that  the  lands  thus  discovered  by  the  Northmen  had  any  connection 
with  the  Indies,  of  which  he  was  in  pursuit.  In  Columbus's  day,  in- 
deed, so  little  was  understood  of  the  true  position  of  these  countries 
that  Greenland  is  laid  down  on  the  maps  in  the  European  seas,  and  as 
a  peninsular  prolongation  of  Scandinavia.  See  Humboldt,  Geographic 
du  nouveau  Continent,  tom.  ii.  pp.  118,  125. 


UtS  APPLICATION  AT  THE   COURT. 


119 


disgust,  determined  to  submit  his  proposals  to  the  Span- 
ish  sovereigns,  relying  on  their  reputed  character  for 
wisdom  and  enterprise.*' 

The  period  of  his  arrival  in  Spain,  being  the  latter 
part  of  1484,  would  seem  to  have  been  the  most  un- 
propitious  possible  to  his  design.  The  nation  was  then 
in  the  heat  of  the  Moorish  war,  and  the  sovereigns  were 
unintermittingly  engaged,  as  we  have  seen,  in  prose- 
cuting their  campaigns,  or  in  active  preparation  for 
them.  The  large  expenditure  incident  to  this  ex- 
hausted all  their  resources;  and  indeed  the  engrossing 
character  of  this  domestic  conquest  left  them  little 
leisure  for  indulging  in  dreams  of  distant  and  doubtful 
discovery.  Columbus,  moreover,  was  unfortunate  in 
his  first  channel  of  communication  with  the  court.  He 
was  furnished  by  Fray  Juan  Perez  de  Marchena,  guar- 
dian of  the  convent  of  La  Rabida  in  Andalusia,  who 
had  early  taken  a  deep  interest  in  his  plans,  with  an 
introduction  to  Fernando  de  Talavera,  prior  of  Prado, 
and  confessor  of  the  queen,  a  person  high  in  the  royal 
confidence,  and  gradually  raised  through  a  succession 
of  ecclesiastical  dignities  to  the  archiepiscopal  see  of 
Granada.  He  was  a  man  of  irreproachable  morals,  and 
of  comprehensive  benevolence  for  that  day,  as  is  shown 
in  his  subsequent  treatment  of  the  unfortunate  Moris- 
cos.'*  He  was  also  learned ;  although  his  learning 
was  that  of  the  cloister,  deeply  tinctured  with  pedantry 

*3  Herrera,  Indias  occidentales,  torn.  i.  dec.  i,  lib.  i,  cap.  7. — Mufloz, 
Hist,  del  Nuevo-Mundo,  lib.  2,  sec.  19. — Gomara,  Hist,  de  las  Indias, 
cap.  15. — Benzoni,  Novi  Orbis  Historia,  lib.  i,  cap.  6. — Fernando  Colon, 
Hist,  del  Almirante,  cap.  10. — Faria  y  Sousa,  Europa  Portuguesa,  torn, 
ii.  part.  3,  cap.  4. 

M  Oviedo,  Quincuagenas,  MS.,  dial,  de  Talavera. 


r 


1 20 


CHRISTOPHER   COLUMBUS. 


and  superstition,  and  debased  by  such  servile  defer- 
ence even  to  the  errors  of  antiquity  as  at  once  led 
him  to  discountenance  every  thing  like  innovation  or 
enterprise.** 

With  these  timid  and  exclusive  views,  Talavera  was 
so  far  from  comprehending  the  vast  conceptions  of 
Columbus,  that  he  seems  to  have  regarded  him  as  a 
mere  visionary,  and  his  hypothesis  as  involving  princi- 
ples not  altogether  orthodox.  Ferdinand  and  Isabella, 
desirous  of  obtaining  the  opinion  of  the  most  com- 
petent judges  on  the  merits  of  Columbus's  theory, 
referred  him  to  a  council  selected  by  Talavera  from  the 
most  eminent  scholars  of  the  kingdom,  chiefly  eccle- 
siastics, whose  profession  embodied  most  of  the  science 
of  that  day.  Such  was  the  ipathy  exhibited  by  this 
learned  conclave,  and  so  numerous  were  the  impedi- 
ments suggested  by  dulness,  prejudice,  or  skepticism, 
that  years  glided  away  before  it  came  to  a  decision. 
During  this  time,  Columbus  appears  to  have  remained 
in  attendance  on  the  court,  bearing  arms  occasionally 
in  the  campaigns,  and  experiencing  from  the  sovereigns 
an  unusual  degree  of  deference  and  personal  attention ; 
an  evidence  of  which  is  afforded  in  the  disbursements 
repeatedly  made  by  the  royal  order  for  his  private 
expenses,  and  in  the  instructions  issued  to  the  munici- 
palities of  the  different  towns  in  Andalusia  to  supply 

»S  Salazar  de  Mendoza,  Cron.  del  Gran  Cardenal.  p.  214. — Herrera, 
Indias  occidentales,  torn.  i.  dec.  i,  lib  r,  cap.  8. — Fernando  Colon, 
Hist,  del  Almirante,  cap.  11. — Munoz  postpones  his  advent  to  Spain  to 
1485,  on  the  supposition  that  he  oifered  his  services  to  Genoa  imme- 
diately after  this  rupture  with  Portugal.  Hist  del  Nuevo-Mundo,  lib. 
a,  sec.  21. 


HIS  APPLICAIION  AT  THE   COURT.        121 


him   gratuitously  with    lodging   and    other   personal 
accommodations.'' 

At  length,  however,  Columbus,  wearied  out  by  this 
painful  procrastination,  pressed  the  court  for  a  definite 
answer  to  his  propositions ;  when  he  was  informed  that 
the  council  of  Salamanca  pronounced  his  scheme  to  be 
**  vain,  impracticable,  and  resting  on  grounds  too  weak 
to  merit  the  support  of  the  government."  Many  in 
the  council,  however,  were  too  enlightened  to  acqui- 
esce in  this  sentence  of  the  majority.  Some  of  the 
most  considerable  persons  of  the  court,  indeed,  moved 
by  the  cogency  of  Columbus's  arguments  and  affected 
by  the  elevation  and  grandeur  of  his  views,  not  only 
cordially  embraced  his  scheme,  but  extended  their  per- 
sonal intimacy  and  friendship  to  him.  Such,  among 
others,  were  the  grand  cardinal  Mendoza,  a  man  whose 
enlarged  capacity,  and  acquaintance  with  affairs,  raised 
him  above  many  of  the  narrow  prejudices  of  his  order, 
and  Deza,  archbishop  of  Seville,  a  Dominican  friar, 
whose  commanding  talents  were  afterwards  unhap- 
pily perverted  in  the  service  of  the  Holy  Office,  over 
which  he  presided  as  successor  to  Torquemada.''    The 

'6  Herrera,  Indias  occidentales,  dec.  i,  lib.  i,  cap.  8. — Zufiiga,  An- 
nales  de  Sevilla,  p.  104. — Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Viages,  torn.  i.  sec. 
60,  61,  torn.  ii.  Col.  dipl.,  nos.  2,  4. 

»7  This  prelate,  Diego  de  Deza,  was  born  of  poor  but  respectable 
parents,  at  Toro.  He  early  entered  the  Dominican  order,  where  his 
learning  and  exemplary  life  recommended  him  to  the  notice  of  the 
sovereigns,  who  called  him  to  court  to  take  charge  of  Prince  John's 
education.  He  was  afterwards  raised,  through  the  usual  course  of 
episcopal  preferment,  to  the  metropolitan  see  of  Seville.  His  situation 
as  confessor  of  Ferdinand  gave  him  great  influence  over  that  monarch, 
with  whom  he  appears  to  have  maintained  an  intimate  correspondence 
to  the  day  of  his  death.     Oviedo,  Quincuagenas,  MS.,  dial,  de  Deza. 

F 


122 


CHRISTOPHER  COLUMBUS. 


authority  of  these  individuals  had  undoubtedly  great 
weight  with  the  sovereigns,  who  softened  the  verdict 
of  the  junto  by  an  assurance  to  Columbus  that,  "  al- 
though they  were  too  much  occupied  at  present  to 
embark  in  his  undertaking,  yet  at  the  conclusion  of 
the  war  they  should  find  both  time  and  inclination  to 
treat  with  him."  Such  was  the  ineffectual  result  of 
Columbus's  long  and  painful  solicitation ;  and,  far  from 
receiving  the  qualified  assurance  of  the  sovereigns  in 
mitigation  of  their  refusal,  he  seems  to  have  considered 
it  as  peremptory  and  final.  In  great  dejection  of  mind, 
therefore,  but  without  further  delay,  he  quitted  the 
court,  and  bent  his  way  to  the  south,  with  the  ap- 
parently almost  desperate  intent  of  seeking  out  some 
other  patron  to  his  undertaking.'* 

Columbus  had  already  visited  his  native  city  of 
Genoa,  for  the  purpose  of  interesting  it  in  his  schemt 
of  discovery;  but  the  attempt  proved  unsuccessful. 
He  now  made  application,  it  would  seem,  to  the  dukest 
of  Medina  Sidonia  and  Medina  Celi,  successively,  from 
the  latter  of  whom  he  experienced  much  kindness  and 
hospitality ;  but  neither  of  these  nobles,  whose  large 
estates  lying  along  the  sea-shore  had  often  invited  them 
to  maritime  adventure,  was  disposed  to  assume  one 
which  seemed  too  hazardous  for  the  resources  of  the 
crown.  Without  wasting  time  in  further  solicitatiou, 
Columbus  prepared  with  a  heavy  heart  to  bid  adieu  tO 
Spain  (1491)  and  carry  his  proposals  to  the  king  of 


»8  Fernando  Colon,  Hist,  del  Almirante,  cap.  11. — Salazar  de  Mv.n- 
doza,  Cr6n.  del  Gran  Cardenal,  p.  215.— Mufloz,  Hist,  del  Nue-.a 
Mundo,  lib.  2,  sec.  25,  29. — Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Viages,  torn.  i. 
introd.,  sec.  60. 


WS  APPLICATION  AT  THE   COURT. 


t2j 


France,  from  whom  he  had  received  a  letter  of  en- 
couragement while  detained  in  Andalusia. "^ 

His  progress,  however,  was  arrested  at  the  convent 
of  La  Rabida,  which  he  visited  previous  to  his  depait- 
ure,  by  his  friend  the  guardian,  who  prevailed  on  him 

'9  Herrera,  Indias  occidentales,  dec.  l,  lib.  i,  cap.  8, — Muiloz,  Hist, 
del  Nuevo-Mundo,  lib.  2,  sec.  27. — Spotomo,  Memorials  of  Colum- 
bus, pp.  31-33. — The  last  dates  the  application  \o  Genoa  prior  to  that 
to  Portugal.  A  letter  from  the  duke  of  Medina  Celi  to  the  cardinal  of 
Spain,  dated  19th  March,  1493,  refers  to  his  entertaining  Columbus  as 
his  guest  for  two  years.  It  is  very  difficult  to  determine  the  date  of 
these  two  years.  If  Herrera  is  correct  in  the  statement  that,  after  a 
five  years'  residence  at  court,  whose  commencement  he  had  previously 
referred  to  XiJ^x,  •;  carried  his  proposals  to  the  duke  of  Medina  Celi 
(see  cap.  7,  8;  '    o  years  may  have  intervened  between  1489- 

1491.  Navarre  ■  "  s  them  between  the  departure  from  Portugal 
and  the  first  application  to  the  court  of  Castile,  in  i486.*  Some  other 
writers,  and  among  them  Munoz  and  Irving,  referring  his  application 
to  Genoa  to  1485,  and  his  first  appearance  in  Spain  to  a  subsequent 
period,  make  no  provision  for  the  residence  with  the  duke  of  Medina 
Celi.  Mr.  Irving,  indeed,  is  betrayed  into  a  chronological  inaccu- 
racy in  speaking  of  a  seven  years'  residence  at  the  court  in  1491,  which 
he  had  previously  noticed  as  having  before  begun  in  i486.  (Life  of 
Columbus  (London,  1828),  comp.  vol.  i.  pp.  Z09,  141.)  In  fact,  the 
discrepancies  among  the  earliest  authorities  are  such  as  to  render 
hopeless  any  attempt  to  settle  with  precision  the  chronology  of  Colum- 
bus's movements  previous  to  his  first  voyage. 


*  fAocording  to  the  account  of  the  duke  of  Medina  Celi,  Columbus, 
when  received  by  him,  was  on  his  way  from  Portugal  to  seek  the  favor 
and  assistance  of  the  French  king.  The  duke  asserts  that  he  would 
himself  have  furnished  h'm  with  three  or  four  caravels,  but  perceiving 
that  the  expedition  was  a  fit  one  to  be  undertaken  by  the  crown,  he 
had  by  letter  commended  it  to  Isabella,  and,  at  her  request,  had  sent 
Columbus  to  the  court.  As  the  object  of  this  statement,  made  on  the 
return  of  Columbus,  was  to  obtain  a  share  in  the  advantages  of  the 
discovery,  we  may  suspect  the  writer  of  having  overrated  his  own 


"4 


CHRISTOPHER  COLUMBUS. 


to  postpone  his  journey  till  another  effort  had  been 
made  to  move  the  Spanish  court  in  his  favor.  For 
this  purpose  the  worthy  ecclesiastic  undertook  an  expe- 
dition in  person  to  the  newly-erected  city  of  Santa  Fe, 
where  the  sovereigns  lay  encamped  before  Granada. 
Juan  Perez  had  formerly  been  confessor  of  Isabella, 
and  was  held  in  great  consideration  by  her  for  his 
excellent  qualities.  On  arriving  at  the  camp,  he  was 
readily  admitted  to  an  audience,  when  he  pressed  the 
suit  of  Columbus  with  all  the  earnestness  and  reason- 
ing of  which  he  was  capable.  The  friar's  eloquence 
was  supported  by  that  of  several  eminent  persons  whom 
Columbus  during  his  long  residence  in  the  country  had 
interested  in  his  project,  and  who  viewed  with  sincere 
regret  the  prospect  of  its  abandonment.  Among  these 
individuals  are  particularly  mentioned  Alonso  de  Quin- 
tanilla,  comptroller-general  of  Castile,  Louis  de  St, 
Angel,  a  fiscal  officer  of  the  crown  of  Aragon,  and  the 
marchioness  of  Moya,  the  personal  friend  of  Isabella, 
all  of  whom  exercised  considerable  influence  over  her 
counsels.  Their  representations,  combined  with  the 
opportune  season  of  the  application,  occurring  at  the 
moment  when  the  approaching  termination  of  the 
Moorish  war  allowed  room  for  interest  in  other  ob- 
jects, wrought  so  favorable  a  change  in  the  dispositions 
of  the  sovereigns  that  they  consented  to  resume  the 
negotiation  with  Columbus.  An  invitation  was  ac- 
cordingly sent  to  him  to  repair  to  Santa  Fe,  and  a  con- 
services  in  the  matter.  Yet  in  the  dearth  or  conflict  of  evidence  the 
document  seems  entitled  to  more  consideration  than  it  has  hitherto  re- 
ceived, especially  as  the  terms  of  it  imply  a  reference  to  Isabella's  ac- 
quaintance with  the  facts,  perhaps  to  that  of  Columbus  himself. — ED.] 


HIS  APPLICATION  AT  THE   COURT. 


"S 


siderable  sum  provided  for  his  suitable  equipment  and 
his  expenses  on  the  road.** 

Columbus,  who  lost  no  time  in  availing  himself  of 
this  welcome  intelligence,  arrived  at  the  camp  in  sea> 
son  to  witness  the  surrender  of  Granada,  when  every 
heart,  swelling  with  exultation  at  the  triumphant  ter- 
mination of  the  v/ar,  was  naturally  disposed  to  enter 
with  greater  confidence  on  a  new  career  of  adventure. 
In  his  interview  with  the  king  and  queen,  he  once 
more  exhibited  the  arguments  on  which  his  hypothesis 
was  founded.  He  then  endeavored  to  stimulate  the 
cupidity  of  his  audience  by  picturing  the  realms  of 
Mangi  and  Cathay,  which  he  confidently  expected  to 
reach  by  this  western  route,  in  all  the  barbaric  splen- 
dors which  had  been  shed  over  them  by  the  lively 
fancy  of  Marco  Polo  and  other  travellers  of  the  Middle 
Ages;  and  he  concluded  with  appealing  to  a  higher 
principle,  by  holding  out  the  prospect  of  extending 
the  empire  of  the  Cross  over  nations  of  benighted 
heathen,  while  he  proposed  to  devote  the  profits  of  his 
enterprise  to  the  recovery  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre.  This 
last  ebullition,  which  might  well  have  passed  for  fanat- 
icism in  a  later  day,  and  giveri  a  visionary  tinge  to  his 
whole  project,  was  not  quite  so  preposterous  in  an  age 
in  which  the  spirit  of  the  crusades  might  be  said  still 
to  linger,  and  the  romance  of  religion  had  not  yet  been 
dispelled  by  sober  reason.  The  more  temperate  sug- 
gestion of  the  diffusion  of  the  gospel  was  well  suited 


*>  Ferreras,  Hist.  d'Espagne,  torn.  viii.  pp.  129,  130. — Mufloz,  Hist, 
del  Nuevo  -  Mundo,  lib.  2,  sec.  31.  —  Herrera,  Indias  occidentales, 
dec.  I,  lib.  I,  cap.  8. — Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Viages,  torn,  i.,  introd., 
sec.  60. 


126 


CHRISTOPHER   COLUMBUS. 


to  affect  Isabella,  in  whose  heart  the  principle  of  de- 
votion was  deeply  seated,  and  who,  in  all  her  under- 
takings, seems  to  have  been  far  less  sensible  to  the 
vulgar  impulses  of  avarice  or  ambition  than  to  any 
argument  connected,  however  remotely,  with  the  inter- 
ests of  religion." 

Amidst  all  these  propitious  demonstrations  towards 
Columbus,  an  obstacle  unexpectedly  arose  in  the  nature 
of  his  demands,  which  stipulated  for  himself  and  heirs 
the.  title  and  authority  of  Admiral  and  Viceroy  over  all 
lands  discovered  by  him,  with  one-tenth  of  the  profits. 
This  was  deemed  wholly  inadmissible.  Ferdinand, 
who  had  looked  with  cold  distrust  on  the  expedition 
from  the  first,  was  supported  by  the  remonstrances  of 
Talavera,  the  new  archbishop  of  Granada,  who  declared 
that  "  such  demands  savored  of  the  highest  degree  of 
arrogance,  and  would  be  unbecoming  in"  their  High- 
nesses to  grant  to  a  needy  foreign  adventurer."  Co- 
lumbus, however,  steadily  resisted  every  attempt  to  in- 
duce him  to  modify  his  propositions.  On  this  ground 
the  conferences  were  abruptly  broken  off,  and  he  once 
more  turned  his  back  upon  the  Spanish  court,  resolved 
rather  to  forego  his  splendid  anticipations  of  discovery, 
at  the  very  moment  when  the  career  so  long  sought 
was  thrown  open  to  him,  than  surrender  one  of  the 
honorable  distinctions  due  to  his  services.  This  last 
act  is  perhaps  the  most  remarkable  exhibition  in  his 
whole  life,  of  that  proud,  unyielding  spirit  which  sus- 
tained him  through  so  many  years  of  trial,  and  enabled 

•»  Herrera,  Indias  occidentales,  dec.  i,  lib.  i,  cap.  8. — Primer  Viage 
de  Colon,  apud  Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Viages,  torn.  i.  pp.  a,  117.— 
Fernando  Colon,  Hist,  del  Almirante,  cap.  13, 


HIS  APPLICATION  AT  THE  COURT. 


127 


him  at  length  to  achieve  his  great  enterprise,  in  the 
face  of  every  obstacle  which  man  and  nature  had 
opposed  to  it." 

The  misunderstanding  was  not  suffered  to  be  of  long 
duration.  Columbus's  friends,  and  especially  Louis  de 
St.  Angel,  remonstrated  with  the  queen  on  these  px  >- 
ceedings  in  the  most  earnest  manner.  He  frankly  told 
her  that  Columbus's  demands,  if  high,  were  at  least  con- 
tingent on  success,  when  they  would  be  well  deserved, 
while,  if  he  failed,  he  required  nothing,  St.  Angel 
expatiated  on  his  qualifications  for  the  undertaking,  so 
signal  as  to  insure  in  all  probability  the  patronage  of 
some  other  monarch,  who  would  reap  the  fruits  of  his 
discoveries;  and  he  ventured  to  remind  the  queen  that 
her  present  policy  was  not  in  accordance  with  the  mag- 
nanimous spirit  which  had  hitherto  made  her  the  ready 
patron  of  great  and  heroic  enterprise.  Far  from  being 
displeased,  Isabella  was  moved  by  his  honest  eloquence. 
She  contemplated  the  proposals  of  Columbus  in  their 
true  light ;  and,  refusing  to  hearken  any  longer  to  the 
suggestions  of  cold  and  timid  counsellors,  she  gave 
way  to  the  natural  impulses  of  her  own  noble  and  gen- 
erous heart.  **I  will  assume  the  undertaking,"  said 
she,  **  for  my  own  crown  of  Castile,  and  am  ready  to 
pawn  my  jewels  to  defray  the  expenses  of  it,  if  the 
funds  in  the  treasury  shall  be  found  inadequate.'*  The 
treasury  had  been  reduced  to  the  lowest  ebb  by  the  late 
war;  but  the  receiver,  St.  Angel,  advanced  the  sums 
required,  from  the  Aragonese  revenues  deposited  in  his 
hands.     Aragon,  however,  was  not  considered  as  ad- 

■»  Mufioz,  Hist,  del  Nuevo-Mundo,  lib.  2,  sec.  28,  29. — Fernando 
Colon,  Hist,  del  Almininte,  ubi  supra. 


128 


CHRISTOPHER  COLUMBUS. 


venturing  in  the  expedition,  the  charges  and  emolu- 
ments of  which  were  reserved  exclusively  for  Castile.'* 

Columbus,  who  was  overtaken  by. the  royal  essen- 
ger  at  a  few  leagues'  distance  only  from  Granada,  ex- 
perienced  the  most  courteous  reception  on  his  return 
to  Santa  Fe,  where  a  definitive  arrangement  was  con- 
cluded with  the  Spanish  sovereigns,  April  17th,  1492. 
By  the  terms  of  the  capitulation,  Ferdinand  and  Isa- 
bella, as  lords  of  the  ocean-seas,  constituted  Christo- 
pher Columbus  their  admiral,  viceroy,  and  governor- 
general  of  all  such  islands  and  continents  as  he  should 
discover  in  the  western  ocean,  with  the  privilege  of 
nominating  three  candidates,  for  the  selection  of  one 
by  the  crown,  for  the  government  of  each  of  these 
territories.  He  was  to  be  vested  with  exclusive-  right 
of  jurisdiction  over  all  commercial  transactions  within 
his  admiralty.  He  was  to  be  entitled  to  one-tenth  of 
all  the  products  and  profits  within  the  limits  of  his  dis- 
coveries, and  an  additional  eighth,  provided  he  should 
contribute  one  eighth  part  of  the  expense.  By  a  sub- 
sequent ordinance,  the  official  dignities  above  enu- 
merated were  settled  on  him  and  his  heirs  forever,  with 
the  privilege  of  prefixing  to  their  names  the  title  of 
Don,  which  had  not  then  degenerated  into  an  appella- 
tion of  mere  courtesy."* 

No  sooner  were  the  arrangements  completed,  than 
Isabella  prepared,  with  her  characteristic  promptness, 

n  Herrera,  Indias  occidentales,  dec.  i,  lib.  1,  cap.  8. — Mufloz,  Hist, 
del  Nuevo-Mundo,  lib.  2,  sec.  32,  33. — Fernando  Colon,  Hist,  del  Al- 
mirante,  cap.  14. — Gomara,  Hist,  de  las  Indias,  cap.  15. 

"4  Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Viages,  torn,  ii.,  Col.  diplomat.,  nos.  5, 
6.— Zuiliga,  Annates  de  Sevilla,  p.  41a. — Mariana,  Hist,  de  Espafla, 
torn.  ii.  p.  605. 


JfIS  APPLICATION  AT  THE  COURT, 


129 


to  forward  the  expedition  by  the  most  efficient  measures. 
Orders  were  sent  to  Seville  and  the  other  ports  of  An- 
dalusia, to  furnish  stores  an  cher  articles  requisite  for 
the  voyage,  free  of  duty,  and  at  as  low  rates  as  possi- 
ble. The  fleet,  consisting  of  three  vessels,  was  to  sail 
from  the  little  port  of  Palos  in  Andalusia,  which  had 
been  condemned  for  some  delinquency  to  maintain  two 
caravels  for  a  twelvemonth  for  the  public  service.  The 
third  vessel  was  furnished  by  the  admiral,  aided,  as  it 
would  seem,  in  defraying  the  charges  by  his  friend  the 
guardian  of  La  Rabida,  and  the  Pinzons,  a  family  in 
Palos  long  distinguished  for  its  enterprise  among  the 
mariners  of  that  active  community.  With  their  assist- 
ance, Columbus  was  enabled  to  surmount  the  disin- 
clination, and  indeed  open  opposition,  manifested  by 
the  Andalusian  mariners  to  his  perilous  voyage;  so 
that  in  less  than  three  months  his  little  squadron  was 
equipped  for  sea.  A  sufficient  evidence  of  the  extreme 
unpopularity  of  the  expedition  is  afforded  by  a  royal 
ordinance  of  the  30th  of  April,  promising  protection 
to  all  persons  who  should  embark  in  it  from  criminal 
prosecution  of  whatever  kind,  until  two  months  after 
their  return.  The  armament  consisted  of  two  caravels, 
or  light  vessels  without  decks,  and  a  third  of  larger 
burden.  The  total  number  of  persons  who  embarked 
amounted  to  one  hundred  and  twenty ;  and  the  whole 
charges  of  the  crown  for  the  expedition  did  not  exceed 
seventeen  thousand  florins.  The  fleet  was  instructed 
to  keep  clear  of  the  African  coast,  and  other  maritime 
possessions  of  Portugal.  At  length,  all  things  being  in 
readiness,  Columbus  and  his  whole  crew  partook  of  the 
sacrament,  and  confessed  themselves,  after  the  devout 
Vol.  II.— 9  F» 


130 


a/mSTOri/ER  COLUMBUS. 


manner  of  the  ancient  Spanish  voyagers  when  engaged 
in  any  important  enterprise;  and  on  the  morning  of  the 
3d  of  August,  1493,  the  intrepid  navigator,  bidding  adieu 
to  the  old  world,  launched  forth  on  that  unfathonied  waste 
of  waters  where  no  sail  had  been  ever  spread  before."' 

It  is  impossible  to  peruse  the  story  of  Columbus 
without  assigning  to  him  almost  exclusively  the  glory 
of  his  great  discovery;  for  from  the  first  moment  of 
its  conception  to  that  of  its  final  execution  he  was  en- 
countered by  every  species  of  mortification  and  em- 
barrassment, with  scarcely  a  heart  to  cheer  or  a  hand 
to  help  him."*    Those  more  enlightened  persons  whom, 

■S  Peter  Martyr,  De  Rebus  Oceanicis  et  Novo  Orbe  (Colonise,  1574), 
dec.  1,  lib.  I. — Navarrete,  Colecclon  de  Viages,  torn,  ii.,  Col.  diplomat., 
nos.  7,  8,  9,  10,  12. — Herrera,  Indias  occidentales,  dec.  i,  lib.  i,  cap. 
9. — Fernando  Colon,  Hist,  del  Almirante,  cap.  14. — Mufloz,  Hist,  del 
Nuevo-Mundo,  lib.  3,  sec.  33. — Benzoni,  Novi  Orbis  Hist.,  lib.  i,  cap. 
6. — Gomara,  Hist,  de  las  Indias,  cap.  15. 

The  expression  in  the  text  will  not  seem  too  strong,  even  admitting 
the  previous  discoveries  of  the  Northmen,  which  were  made  in  so  much 
higher  latitudes.  Humboldt  has  well  shown  the  probabilities,  a //-/or/, 
of  such  discoveries,  made  in  a  narrow  part  of  the  Atlantic,  where  the 
Orcades,  the  Faroe  Islands,  Iceland,  and.  Greenland  afforded  the  voy- 
ager so  many  intermediate  stations,  at  moderate  distances  from  each 
other.  (Geographic  du  nouveau  Continent,  tom.  ii.  pp.  183  et  seq.) 
The  publication  of  the  original  Scandinavian  MSS.  (of  which  imper- 
fect notices  and  selections  only  have  hitherto  found  their  way  into  the 
world)  by  the  Royal  Society  of  Northern  Antiquaries,  at  Copenhagen, 
is  a  matter  of  the  deepest  interest ;  and  it  is  fortunate  that  it  is  to  be 
conducted  under  auspices  which  must  insure  its  execution  in  the  most 
faithful  and  able  manner.  It  may  be  doubted,  however,  whether  the 
declaration  of  the  Prospectus,  that  "  it  was  the  knowledge  of  the  Scan- 
dinavian voyages,  in  all  probability,  which  prompted  the  expedition  of 
Columbus,"  can  ever  be  established.  His  personal  history  furnishes 
strong  internal  evidence  to  the  contrary. 

=*  How  strikingly  are  the  forlorn  condition  and  indomitable  energy 
of  Columbus  depicted  in  the  following  noble  verses  of  Chiabrera ! — 


ins  APPLICATION  AT  THE   COURT. 


>3i 


during  his  long  residence  in  Spain,  he  succeeded  in 
interesting  in  his  expedition,  looked  to  it  probably  as 
the  means  of  solving  a  dubious  problem,  with  the  same 
sort  of  '  gue  and  skeptical  curiosity  as  to  its  successful 
result  with  which  we  contemplate,  in  our  day,  an  at- 
tempt to  arrive  at  the  Northwest  passage.  How  feeble 
was  the  interest  excited,  even  among  those  who  from 
their  science  and  situation  would  seem  to  have  their 
attention  most  naturally  drawn  towards  it,  may  be  in- 
ferred from  the  infrequency  of  allusion  to  it  in  the  cor- 
respondence and  other  writings  of  that  time,  previous 
to  the  actual  discovery.  Peter  Martyr,  one  of  the 
most  accomplished  scholars  of  the  period,  whose  resi- 
dence at  the  Castilian  court  must  have  fully  instructed 
him  in  the  designs  of  Columbus,  and  whose  inquisitive 
mind  led  him  subsequently  to  take  the  deepest  interest 
;in  the  results  of  his  discoveries,  does  not,  so  far  as  I 
am  aware,  allude  to  him  in  any  part  of  his  voluminous 
correspondence  with  the  learned'  men  of  his  time,  pre- 
vious to  the  first  expedition.  The  common  people 
regarded,  not  merely  with  apathy,  but  with  terror,  the 
prospect  of  a  voyage  that  was  to  take  the  mariner  from 
the  safe  and  pleasant  seas  which  he  was  accustomed  to 
navigate,  and  send  him  roving  on  the  boundless  wilder- 

"  Certo  da  cor,  ch'  alto  destin  non  scelse, 
Son  1'  imprese  magnanime  neglette ; 
Ma  le  beir  alme  alle  bell'  opre  elette 
Sanno  gioir  nelle  fatiche  eccelse ; 
Ni  biasmo  popolar,  frale  catena, 
Spirto  d'  onore,  il  suo  canimin  refirena. 
Cos!  luiiga  stagion  per  modi  indegni 
Eiiropa  disprezz6  1'  inclita  speme, 
Schernendo  il  vulgo,  e  seco  i  Regi  insieme 
Niido  nocchUr,  promettitor  di  Regni." 

Rime,  parte  i.  canzone  la. 


132 


ClIRISTOPltER   COLUMBUS. 


ness  of  waters,  which  tradition  and  superstitious  fancy 
had  peopled  with  innumerable  forms  of  horror. 

It  is  true  that  Columbus  experienced  a  most  honor- 
able reception  at  the  Castilian  court ;  such  as  naturally 
flowed  from  the  benevolent  spirit  of  Isabella  and  her 
just  appreciation  of  his  pure  and  elevated  character. 
But  the  queen  was  too  little  of  a  proficient  in  science 
to  be  able  to  estimate  the  merits  of  his  hypothesis ; 
and,  as  many  of  those  on  whose  judgment  she  leaned 
deemed  it  chimerical,  it  is  probable  that  she  never 
entertained  a  deep  conviction  of  its  truth  ;  at  lexst  not 
enough  to  warrant  the  liberal  expenditure  which  she 
never  refused  to  schemes  of  real  importance.  This  is 
certainly  inferred  by  the  paltry  amount  actually  ex- 
pended on  the  armament,  far  inferior  to  that  appropri- 
ated to  the  equipment  of  two  several  fleets  in  the  course 
of  the  late  war  for  a  foreign  expedition,  as  well  as  to 
that  with  which  in  the  ensuing  year  she  followed  up 
Columbus's  discoveries. 

But  while,  on  a  review  of  the  circumstances,  we  are 
led  more  and  more  to  admire  the  constancy  and  un- 
conquerable spirit  which  carried  Columbus  victorious 
through  all  the  difficulties  of  his  undertaking,  we  must 
remember,  in  justice  to  Isabella,  that,  although  tardily, 
she  did  in  fact  furnish  the  resources  essential  to  its 
execution ;  that  she  undertook  the  enterprise  when  it 
had  been  explicitly  declined  by  other  powers,  and  when 
probably  none  other  of  that  age  would  have  been  found 
to  countenance  it ;  and  that,  after  once  plighting  her 
faith  to  Columbus,  she  became  his  steady  friend,  shield- 
ing him  against  the  calumnies  of  his  enemies,  reposing 
in  him  the  most  generous  confidence,  and  serving  him 


m 


niS  APPLICATION  AT  THE   COURT. 


133 


in  the  most  acceptable  manner,  by  supplying  ample 
resources  for  the  prosecution  of  his  glorious  discov* 
eries."' 

•7  Colutnt)US,  in  a  letter  written  on  his  third  voyage,  pays  an  honest, 
heartfelt  tribute  to  the  effectual  patronage  which  he  experienced  from 
the  queen.  "  In  the  midst  of  the  general  incredulity,"  says  he,  "  the 
Almighty  infused  into  the  cjucen,  my  lady,  the  spirit  of  intelligence 
and  energy ;  and,  whilst  every  one  else,  in  his  ignorance,  was  expa- 
tiating only  on  the  inconvenience  and  cost,  her  Highness  approved  it, 
on  the  contrary,  and  gave  it  all  tlie  support  in  her  power."  See  Carta 
al  Ama  del  Principe  D.Juan,  apud  Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Viages, 
torn.  i.  p.  266. 


It  is  now  more  than  thirty  years  since  the  Spanish  government  m- 
trusted  Don  Martin  Fernandez  de  Navarrete,  one  of  the  most  eminent 
scholars  of  the  country,  with  the  care  of  exploring  the  public  archives, 
for  the  purpose  of  collecting  information  relative  to  the  voyages  and 
discoveries  of  the  early  Spanish  navigators.  In  1825,  Scfior  Navarrete 
gave  to  the  world  the  first-fruits  of  his  indefatigable  researches,  in  two 
volumes,  the  commencement  of  a  series,  comprehending  letters,  pri- 
vate journals,  royal  ordinances,  and  other  original  documents,  illus- 
trative of  the  discovery  of  America.  These  two  volumes  are  devoted 
exclusively  to  the  adventures  and  personal  history  of  Columbus,  and 
must  be  regarded  as  the  only  authentic  basis  on  which  any  notice  of 
the  great  navigator  can  hereafter  rest.  Fortunately,  Mr.  Irving's  visit 
10  Spain,  at  this  period,  enabled  the  world  to  derive  the  full  benefit  of 
Sefior  Navarrete's  researches,  by  presenting  their  results  in  connection 
with  whatever  had  been  before  known  of  Columbus,  in  the  lucid  .A 
attractive  form  which  engages  the  interest  of  every  reader.  It  \\..u'4 
seem  highly  proper  that  the  fortunes  of  the  discoverer  of  America 
should  engage  the  pen  of  an  inhabitant  of  her  most  favored  and  en- 
lightened region  ;  and  it  is  unnecessary  to  add  that  the  task  iias  been 
executed  in  a  manner  which  must  secure  to  the  historir  i  .1  share  in 
the  imperishable  renown  of  his  subject.  The  adventures  of  Colum- 
bus, which  form  so  splendid  an  episode  to  t^e  reign  of  Ferdinand  and 
Isabella,  cannot  properly  come  within  the  scope  of  its  historian,  except 
so  far  as  relates  to  his  personal  intercourse  with  the  government,  or  to 
their  results  on  the  fortunes  of  the  Spanish  monarchy. 


CHAPTER    XVII. 


EXPULSION   OF   THE   JEWS    FROM   SPAIN. 


I  III 
m 


1492. 

Excitement  against  the  Jews. — Edict  of  Expulsion. — Dreadful  SuflFcr- 
ings  of  the  Emigrants. — Whole  Number  of  Exiles. — Disastrous  Re- 
sults.— True  Motives  of  the  Edict. — Contemporary  Judgments. 

While  the  Spanish  sovereigns  were  detained  before 
Granada,  they  published  their  memorable  and  most 
disastrous  edict  against  the  Jews;  inscribing  it,  as  it 
were,  with  the  same  pen  which  drew  up  the  glorious 
capitulation  of  Granada  and  the  treaty  with  Columbus. 
The  rer^der  has  been  made  acquainted  in  a  preceding 
chapter  with  the  prosperous  condition  of  the  Jews  in 
the  Peninsula,  and  the  pre-eminent  consideration  which 
they  attained  there  beyond  any  other  part  of  Chris- 
tendom. The  envy  raised  by  their  prosperity,  c  jni 
bined  with  the  high  religious  excitement  kindled  in  the 
long  war  with  the  infidel,  directed  the  terrible  arm  of 
the  Inquisition,  as  has  been  already  stated,  against  this 
unfortunate  people ;  but  the  result  showed  the  failure 
of  the  experiment,  since  comparatively  few  conver- 
sions, and  those  frequently  of  a  suspicious  character, 
were  effected,  while  the  great  mass  still  maintained  a 
pertinacious  attachment  to  ancient  errors.* 

»  It  is  a  proof  of  the  high  consideration  in  which  such  Israelites  as 
were  willing  to  embrace  Christianity  were  held,  that  three  of  that  num« 

(134) 


! 


EXPULSION  OF  THE   JEWS. 


'35 


Under  these  circumstances,  the  popular  odium,  in- 
flamed by  the  discontent  of  the  clergy  at  the  resistance 
which  they  encountered  in  the  work  of  proselytism, 
gradually  grew  stronger  and  stronger  against  the  un- 
happy Israelites.  Old  traditions,  as  old  indeed  as  the 
thirteenth  and  fourteenth  centuries,  were  revived,  and 
charged  on  the  present  generation,  with  all  the  details 
of  place  and  action.  Christian  children  were  said  to 
be  kidnapped  in  order  to  be  crucified  in  derision  of  the 
Saviour;  the  host,  it  was  rumored,  was  exposed  to  the 
grossest  indignities  \  and  physicians  and  apothecaries, 
whose  science  was  particularly  cultivated  by  the  Jews 
in  the  Middle  Ages,  were  accused  of  poisoning  their 
Christian  patients.  No  rumor  was  too  absurd  for  the 
easy  credulity  of  the  people.  The  Israelites  were 
charged  with  the  more  probable  offence  of  attempting 
to  convert  to  their  own  faith  the  ancient  Christians,  as 
well  as  to  reclaim  such  of  their  own  race  as  had  recently 
embraced  Christianity.  A  great  scandal  was  occasioned 
also  by  the  intermarriages  which  still  occasionally  took 
place  between  Jews  and  Christians;  the  latter  conde- 
scending to  rejjair  their  dilapidated  fortunes  by  these 
wealthy  alliances,  though  at  the  expense  of  their  vaunted 
purity  of  blood.' 

ber,  Alvarez,  Avila,  and  Pulgar,  were  private  secretnries  of  the  queen. 
(Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de  Hist.,  torn.  vi.  Ilust.  18,)  An  incidental  expres- 
sion of  Martyr's,  among  many  similar  ones  by  contemporaries,  affords 
the  true  key  to  the  popular  odium  against  the  Jews :  "  Cum  namque 
viderent,  Judaeorum  tabido  commercio,  qui  hac  hora  sunt  in  Hispania 
innumeri  Christianis  ditiores,  plurimorum  animos  corrumpi  ac  seduci," 
etc.    Opus  Epist,  epist.  92. 

»  Paramo,  De  Origine  Inquisitionis,  p.  164. — Llorente,  Hist,  de  I'ln- 
quisition,  torn.  i.  cap.  7,  sec  3. — Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  epist.  94.— 
Ferreras,  Hist.  d'Espagne,  torn.  viii.  p.  128. 


! 


136 


EXPULSION  OF   THE   JEWS. 


Ill 

'  Irll! 
Ill 


it 

hi 


These  various  offences  were  urged  against  the  Jews 
with  great  pertinacity  by  their  enemies,  and  the  sover- 
eigns were  importuned  to  adopt  a  more  rigorous  policy. 
The  inquisitors,  in  particular,  to  whom  the  work  oi 
conversion  had  been  specially  intrusted,  represented 
the  incompetence  of  all  lenient  measures  to  the  end 
proposed.  They  asserted  that  the  only  mode  left  for 
the  extirpation  of  the  Jewish  heresy  was  to  eradicate 
the  seed ;  and  they  boldly  demanded  the  immediate 
and  total  banishment  of  every  unbaptized  Israelite  from 
the  land.  3 

The  Jews,  who  had  obtained  an  intimation  of  these 
proceedings,  resorted  to  their  usual  crafty  policy  for 
propitiating  the  sovereigns.  They  commissioned  one 
of  their  body  to  tender  a  donative  of  thirty  thousand 
ducats  towards  defraying  the  expenses  of  the  Moorish 
war.  The  negotiation,  however,  was  suddenly  inter- 
rupted by  the  inquisitor-general,  Torquemada,  who 
burst  into  the  apartment  of  the  palace  where  the  sover- 
eigns were  giving  audience  to  the  Jewish  deputy,  and, 
drawing  forth  a  crucifix  from  beneath  his  mantle,  held 
it  up,  exclaiming,  **  Judas  Iscariot  sold  his  master  for 
thirty  pieces  of  silver.  Your  Highnesses  would  sell 
him  anew  for  thirty  thousand;  here  he  is,  take  him, 
and  barter  him  away."  So  saying,  the  frantic  priest 
threw  the  crucifix  on  the  table,  and  left  the  apartment. 
The  sovereigns,  instead  of  chastising  this  presumption, 

3  Paramo,  De  Origine  Inqtiisitionis,  p.  163. — Salazar  de  Mendoza 
refers  the  sovereign's  consent  to  the  banishment  of  the  Jews,  in  a  great 
measure,  to  the  urgent  remonstrances  of  the  cardinal  of  Spain.  The 
bigotry  of  the  biographer  makes  him  claim  the  credit  of  every  fanatical 
act  for  his  illustrious  hero.    See  Cr6n,  del  Gran  Cardenal,  p.  250. 


EXPULSION  UF  THE   JEWS. 


137 


or  despising  it  as  a  mere  freak  of  insanity,  were  over- 
awed by  it.  Neither  Ferdinand  nor  Isabella,  had  they 
been  left  to  the  unbiassed  dictates  of  their  own  reason, 
could  have  sanctioned  for  a  moment  so  impolitic  a 
measure,  which  involved  the  loss  of  the  most  industrious 
and  skilful  portion  of  their  subjects.  Its  extreme  injus- 
tice and  cruelty  rendered  it  especially  repugnant  to  the 
naturally  humane  disposition  of  the  queen.*  But  she 
had  been  early  schooled  to  distrust  her  own  reason,  and 
indeed  the  natural  suggestions  of  humanity,  in  cases 
of  conscience.  Among  the  reverend  cc  insellors  on 
whom  she  most  relied  in  these  matters  was  the  Domin- 
ican Torquemada.  The  situation  which  this  man 
enjoyed  as  the  queen's  confessor,  during  the  tender 
years  of  her  youth,  gave  him  an  ascendency  over  her 
mind  which  must  have  been  denied  to  a  person  of  his 
savage,  fanatical  temper,  even  with  the  advantages  of 
this  spiritual  connection,  had  it  been  formed  at  a  riper 
period  of  her  life.  Without  opposing  further  resistance 
to  the  representations,  so  emphatically  expressed,  of  the 
holy  persons  in  whom  she  most  confided,  Isabella,  at 
length,  silenced  her  own  scruples,  and  consented  to  the 
fatal  measure  of  proscription. 

The  edict  for  the  expulsion  of  the  Jews  was  signed 
by  the  Spanish  sovereigns  at  Granada,  March  30th, 
1492.  The  preamble  alleges,  in  vindication  of  the 
measure,  the  danger  of  allowing  further  intercourse 


4  Llorente,  Hist,  de  I'lnquisition,  torn,  i.  chap.  7,  sect.  5. — Pulgar,  in 
a  letter  to  the  cardinal  of  Spain,  animadverting  with  much  severity  on 
the  tenor  of  certain  municipal  ordinances  against  the  Jews  in  Guipu3< 
coa  and  Toledo,  in  1482,  plainly  intimates  that  they  were  not  at  all  to 
the  taste  of  the  queen.    See  Letras  (Amstelodami,  1670),  let.  31. 


«38 


EXPULSION  OF  THE   JEWS. 


between  the  Jews  and  their  Christian  subjects,  in  con* 
sequence  of  the  incorrigible  obstinacy  with  which  the 
former  persisted  in  their  attempts  to  make  converts  of 
the  latter  to  their  own  faith,  and  to  instruct  them  in 
their  heretical  rites,  in  open  defiance  of  every  legal 
prohibition  and  penalty.  When  a  college  or  corpora- 
tion of  any  kind — the  instrument  goes  on  to  state — is 
convicted  of  any  great  or  detestable  crime,  it  is  right 
that  it  should  be  disfranchised,  the  less  suffering  with 
the  greater,  the  innocent  with  the  guilty.  If  this  be 
the  case  in  temporal  concerns,  it  is  much  more  so  in 
those  which  affect  the  eternal  welfare  of  the  soul.  It 
finally  decrees  that  all  unbaptized  Jews,  of  whatever 
age,  sex,  or  condition,  should  depart  from  the  realm 
by  the  end  of  July  next  ensuing;  prohibiting  them 
from  revisiting  it,  on  any  pretext  whatever,  under 
penalty  of  death  and  confiscation  of  property.  It  was, 
moreover,  interdicted  to  every  subject  to  harbor,  suc- 
cor, or  minister  to  the  necessities  of  any  Jew,  after  the 
expiration  of  the  term  limited  for  his  departure.  The 
persons  and  property  of  the  Jews,  in  the  mean  time, 
were  taken  under  the  royal  protection.  They  were 
allowed  to  dispose  of  their  effects  of  every  kind  on 
their  own  account,  and  to  carry  the  proceeds  along 
with  them,  in  bills  of  exchange,  or  merchandise  not 
prohibited,  but  neither  in  gold  nor  silver.* 

The  doom  of  exile  fell  like  a  thunderbolt  on  the 
heads  of  the  Israelites.  A  large  proportion  of  them 
had  hitherto  succeeded  in  shielding  themselves  from 
the  searching  eye  of  the  Inquisition,  by  an  affectation 

6  Carbajal,  Anales,  MS.,  alio  1492. — Recop.  de  las  Leyes,  lib.  8,  tit* 
2,  ley  8. — Pragmiticas  del  Reyno,  ed.  1520,  fol,  3. 


EXPULSION  OF  THE   JEWS. 


139 


of  reverence  for  the  forms  of  Catholic  worship,  and  a 
discreet  forbearance  of  whatever  might  offend  the  pre- 
judices of  their  Christian  brethren.  They  had  even 
hoped  that  their  steady  loyalty  and  a  quiet  and  orderly 
discharge  of  tb"'^  social  duties  wpuld  in  time  secure 
them  higher  immu.  ties.  Many  had  risen  to  a  degree 
of  opulence,  by  mea.is  of  the  thrift  and  dexterity  pecu- 
liar to  the  race,  which  gave  them  a  still  deeper  interest 
in  the  land  of  their  residence.*  Their  families  were 
reared  in  all  the  elegant  refinements  of  life ;  and  their 
wealth  and  education  often  disposed  them  to  turn  their 
attention  to  liberal  pursuits,  which  ennobled  the  char- 
acter, indeed,  but  rendered  them  personally  more  sen- 
sible to  physical  annoyance  and  less  fitted  to  encounter 
the  perils  and  privations  of  their  dreary  pilgrimage. 
Even  the  mass  of  the  common  people  possessed  a  dex- 
terity in  various  handicrafts  which  afforded  a  comfort- 
able livelihood,  raising  them  far  above  similar  classes 
in  most  other  nations,  who  might  readily  be  detached 
from  the  soil  on  which  they  happened  to  be  cast,  with 
comparatively  little  sacrifice  of  local  interests.'  These 
ties  were  now  severed  at  a  blow.  They  were  to  go  forth 
as  exiles  from  the  land  of  their  birth ;  the  land  where 
all  whom  they  ever  loved  had  lived  or  died ;  the  land 
not  so  muv  \  of  their  adoption  as  of  their  inheritance ; 
which  had  been  the  home  of  their  ancestors  for  cen- 
turies, and  with  whose  prosperity  and  glory  they  were 

*  The  Curate  of  Lob  Palacios  speaks  of  several  Israelites  worth  one  or 
two  millions  of  maravedis,  and  of  another  as  having  even  amassed  ten. 
He  mentions  one,  in  particular,  by  the  name  of  Abraham,  as  renting 
the  greater  part  of  Castile  /It  will  hardly  do  to  take  the  good  .Curate's 
statement  h.  la  lettre.    See  Reyes  Catolicos,  MS.,  cap.  \vi. 

1  Bernaldes,  Reyes  Catolicos,  ubi  supra. 


I40 


EXPULSION  OF  THE   JEWS. 


of  course  as  intimately  associated  as  was  any  ancient 
Spaniard.  They  were  to  be  cast  out  helpless  and  de- 
fenceless, with  a  brand  of  infamy  set  on  them,  among 
nations  who  had  always  held  them  in  derision  and 
hatred. 

Those  provisions-  of  the  edict  which  affected  a  show 
of  kindness  to  the  Jews  were  contrived  so  artfully  as 
to  be  nearly  nugatory.  As  they  were  excluded  from  the 
use  of  gold  and  silver,  the  only  medium  for  represent- 
ing their  property  was  bills  of  exchange.  But  commerce 
was  too  limited  and  imperfect  to  allow  of  these  being 
promptly  obtained  to  any  very  considerable,  much  less 
to  the  enormous  amount  required  in  the  present  in- 
stance. It  was  impossible,  moreover,  to  negotiate  a 
sale  of  their  effects  under  existing  circumstances,  sin":e 
the  market  was  soon  glutted  with  commv. Cities;  and 
few  would  be  found  willing  to  give  any  thing  like  an 
equivalent  for  what,  if  not  disposed  of  within  the  pre- 
scribed term,  the  proprietors  must  relinquish  at  any 
ra^e.  So  deplorable,  indeed,  was  the  sacrifice  of  prop- 
erty that  a  chronicler  of  the  day  mentions  that  he  had 
seen  a  house  exchanged  for  an  ass,  and  a  vineyard  for 
a  suit  of  clothes  1  In  Aragon,  matters  were  still  worse. 
The  government  there  discovered  that  the  Jews  were 
largely  indebted  to  individuals  and  to  certain  corpora- 
tions. It  accordingly  caused  their  property  to  be  seques- 
trated for  the  benefit  of  their  creditors,  until  their  debts 
should  be  liquidated.  Strange,  indeed,  that  the  balance 
should  be  found  against  a  people  who  have  been  every- 
where conspicuous  for  their  commercial  sagacity  and 
resources,  and  who,  as  factors  of  the  great  nobility  and 
farmers  of  the  revenue,  enjoyed  at  least  equal  advan- 


EXPULSION  OF  THE   JEWS, 


141 


tages  in  Spain  with  those  possessed  in  other  countries 
for  the  accumulation  of  wealth.* 

While  the  gloomy  aspect  of  their  fortunes  pressed 
heavily  on  the  hearts  of  the  Israelites,  the  Spanish  clergy 
were  indefatigable  in  the  work  of  conversion.  They 
lectured  in  the  synagogues  and  public  squares,  expound- 
ing the  doctrines  of  Christianity,  and  thundering  forth 
both  argument  and  invective  against  the  Hebrew  heresy. 
But  their  laudable  endeavors  were  in  a  great  measure 
counteracted  by  the  more  authoritative  rhetoric  of  the 
Jewish  Rabbins,  who  compared  the  persecutions  of  their 
brethren  to  those  which  their  ancestors  had  suffered 
under  Pharaoh.  They  encouraged  them  to  persevere, 
representing  that  the  present  afflictions  were  intended 
as  a  trial  of  their  faith  by  the  /  Imighty,  who  designed 
in  this  way  to  guide  them  to  the  promised  land,  by 
opening  a  path  through  the  waters,  as  he  had  done  to 
their  fathers  of  old.  The  more  wealthy  Israelites 
enforced  their  exhortations  by  liberal  contributions  for 
the  relief  of  their  indigent  brethren.  Thus  strength- 
ened, there  were  found  but  very  few,  when  the  day  of 
departure  arrived,  who  were  not  prepared  to  abandon 
their  country  rather  than  their  religion.  This  extra- 
ordinary act  of  self-devotion  by  a  whole  people  for 
conscience'  sake  may  be  thought,  in  the  nineteenth 
century,  to  merit  other  epithets  than  those  of  **  perfidy, 
incredulity,  and  stifT-necked  obstinacy,"  with  which 

*  Bemaldez,  Reyes  Cat61icos,  MS.,  cap.  10. — Zurita,  Anales,  torn.  v. 
fol.  9. — Capmany  notices  the  number  of  synagogues  existing  in  Aragon 
in  1428  as  amounting  to  nineteen.  In  Galicia  at  the  same  time  there 
were  but  three,  and  in  Catalonia  but  one.  See  Mem.  de  Barcelona, 
tom.  iv.  Apend.  num.  11. 


i|:    I 


142 


EXPULSION  OF  THE  JEWS. 


the  worthy  Curate  of  Los  Falacios,  in  the  charitable 
feeling  of  that  day,  has  seen  fit  to  stigmatize  it.» 

When  the  period  of  departure  arrived,  all  the  prin- 
cipal routes  through  the  country  might  be  seen  swarm- 
ing with  emigrants,  old  and  young,  the  sick  and  the 
helpless,  men,  women,  and  children,  mingled  promis- 
cuously together,  some  mounted  on  horses  or  mules, 
but  far  the  greater  part  undertaking  their  painful  pil- 
grimage on  foot.  The  sight  of  so  much  misery  touched 
even  the  Spaniards  wit».  pity,  though  none  might  succor 
them ;  for  the  grand  inquisitor,  Torquemada,  enforced 
the  ordinance  to  that  effect  by  denouncing  heavy  eccle- 
siastical censures  on  all  who  should  presume  to  violate 
it.  The  fugitives  were  distributed  along  various  routes, 
being  determined  in  their  destination  by  accidental 
circumstances  much  more  than  by  any  knowledge  of  the 
respective  countries  to  which  they  were  bound.  Much 
the  largest  division,  amounting  according  to  some  esti- 
mates to  eighty  thousand  souls,  passed  into  Portugal ; 
whose  monarch,  John  the  Second,  dispensed  with  his 
scruples  of  conscience  so  far  as  to  give  them  a  free  pass- 
age through  his  dominions  on  their  way  to  Africa,  in 
consideration  of  a  tax  of  a  cruzado  a  head.  He  is  even 
said  to  have  silenced  his  scruples  so  far  as  to  allow  cer- 
tain ingenious  artisans  to  establish  themselves  perma- 
nently in  the  kingdom.** 

A  considerable  number  found  their  way  to  the  ports 
of  Santa  Maria  and  Cadiz,  where,  after  lingering  some 

9  Bernaldcz,  Reyes  Cat61icos,  MS.,  cap.  10,  113. — Ferreras,  Hist. 
d'Espagne,  torn.  viii.  p.  131. 

'o  Zurita,  Anales,  torn.  v.  fol.  9. — Ferreras,  Hist.  d'Espagne,  torn, 
viii.  p.  133. — Bemaldez,  Reyes  Cat61icos,  ubi  supra. — La  Glide,  Hist. 
de  Portugal,  torn.  iv.  p.  95. — Mariana,  Hist.de  Espafia,  torn.  ii.  p.  603. 


EXPULSION  OF  THE  JEWS. 


«43 


time  in  the  vain  hope  of  seeing  the  waters  open  for  their 
egress,  according  to  the  promises  of  the  Rabbins,  they 
embarked  on  board  a  Spanish  fleet  for  the  Barbary  coast. 
Having  crossed  over  to  Ercilla,  a  Christian  settlement 
in  Africa,  whence  they  proceeded  by  land  towards  Fez, 
where  a  considerable  body  of  their  countrymen  resided, 
they  were  assaulted  on  their  route  by  the  roving  tribes 
of  the  desert,  in  quest  of  plunder.  Notwithstanding 
the  interdict,  the  Jews  had  contrived  to  secrete  small 
sums  of  money,  sewed  up  in  their  garments  or  the 
linings  of  their  saddles.  These  did  not  escape  the 
avaricious  eyes  of  their  spoilers,  who  are  even  said  to 
have  ripped  open  the  bodies  of  their  victims  in  search 
of  gold  which  they  were  supposed  to  have  swallowed. 
The  lawless  barbarians,  mingling  lust  with  avarice, 
abandoned  themselves  to  still  more  frightful  excesses, 
violating  the  wives  and  daughters  of  the  unresisting 
Jews,  or  massacring  in  cold  blood  such  as  offered  re- 
sistance. But,  without  pursuing  these  loathsome  details 
further,  it  need  only  be  added  that  the  miserable  exiles 
endured  such  extremity  of  famine  that  they  were  glad 
to  force  a  nourishment  from  the  grass  which  grew 
scantily  among  the  sands  of  the  desert ;  until  at  length 
great  numbers  of  them,  wasted  by  disease,  and  broken 
in  spirit,  retraced  their  steps  to  Ercilla,  and  consented 
to  be  baptized,  in  the  hope  of  being  permitted  to  re- 
visit their  native  land.  The  number,  indeed,  was  so 
considerable  that  the  priest  who  officiated  was  obliged 
to  make  use  of  the  mop,  or  hyssop,  with  which  the 
Roman  Catholic  missionaries  were  wont  to  scatter  the 
holy  drops  whose  mystic  virtue  could  cleanse  the  soul  in 
a  moment  from  the  foulest  stains  of  infidelity.  **  Thus, 


>f 


144 


EXPULSION  OF  THE   JEWS. 


says  a  Castilian  historian,  ''  the  calamities  of  these  poor 
blind  creatures  proved  in  the  end  an  excellent  remedy, 
that  God  made  use  of  to  unseal  their  eyes,  which  they 
now  opened  to  the  vain  promises  of  the  Rabbins;  so 
that,  renouncing  their  ancient  heresies,  they  became 
faithful  followers  of  the  Cross!"" 

Many  of  the  emigrants  took  the  direction  of  Italy. 
Those  who  landed  at  Naples  brought  with  them  an 
infectious  disorder,  contracted  by  long  confinement  in 
small,  crowded,  and  ill-provided  vessels.  The  disorder 
was  so  malignant,  and  spread  with  such  frightful  celerity, 
as  to  sweep  off  more  than  twenty  thousand  inhabitants 
of  the  city  in  the  course  of  the  year,  whence  it  extended 
its  devastation  over  the  whole  Italian  peninsula. 

A  graphic  picture  of  these  horrbrs  is  thus  given  by  a 
Genoese  historian,  an  eye-witness  of  the  scenes  he  de- 
scribes. "No  one,"  he  says,  "could  behold  the  suf- 
ferings of  the  Jewish  exiles  unmoved.  A  great  many 
perished  of  hunger,  especially  those  of  tender  years. 
Mothers,  with  scarcely  strength  to  support  themselves, 
carried  their  famished  infants  in  their  arms,  and  died 
with  them.  Many  fell  victims  to  the  cold,  others  to 
intense  thirst,  while  the  unaccustomed  distresses  inci- 
dent to  a  sea-voyage  aggravated  their  maladies.  I  will 
not  enlarge  on  the  cruelty  and  the  avarice  which  they 
frequently  experienced  from  the  masters  of  the  ships 
which  transported  them  from  Spain.  Some  were  mur- 
dered to  gratify  their  cupidity,  others  forced  to  sell 
their  children  for  the  expenses  of  the  passage.  They 
arrived  in  Genoa  in  crowds,  but  were  not  suffered  to 

««  Ferreras,  Hist.  d'Espagne,  torn.  viii.  p.  133. — Bernaldez,  Reyes 
Cat(}licus,  MS.,  cap.  113. 


EXPULSION  OF  THE   JEWS. 


MS 


tarry  there  long,  by  reason  of  the  ancient  law  which 
interdicted  the  Jewish  traveller  from  a  longer  residence 
than  three  days.  They  were  allowed,  however,  to  refit 
their  vessels,  and  to  recruit  themselves  for  some  days 
from  the  fatigues  of  their  voyage.  One  might  have 
taken  them  for  spectres,  so  emaciated  were  they,  so 
cadaveit>us  in  their  aspect,  and  with  eyes  so  sunken ; 
they  differed  in  nothing  from  the  dead,  except  in  the 
power  of  motion,  which  indeed  they  scarcely  retained. 
Many  fainted  and  expired  on  the  mole,  which,  being 
completely  surrounded  by  the  sea,  was  the  only  quarter 
vouchsafed  to  the  wretched  emigrants.  The  infection 
bred  by  such  a  swarm  of  dead  and  dying  persons  was 
not  at  once  perceived ;  but,  when  the  winter  broke  up, 
ulcers  began  to  make  their  appearance,  and  the  malady, 
which  lurked  for  a  long  time  in  the  city,  broke  out  into 
the  plague  in  the  following  year."" 

Many  of  the  exiles  passed  into  Turkey,  and  to  dif- 
ferent parts  of  the  Levant,  where  their  descendants 
continued  to  speak  the  Castilian  language  far  into  the 
following  century.  Others  found  their  way  to  France, 
and  even  England.  Part  of  their  religious  services  is 
recited  to  this  day  in  Spanish,  in  one  or  more  of  the 
London  synagogues  j  and  the  modern  Jew  still  reverts 
with  fond  partiality  to  Spain,  as  the  cherished  land  of 
his  fathers,  illustrated  by  the  most  glorious  recollections 
in  their  eventful  history.*' 

**  Senarega,  apud  Muratori,  Rerum  Ital.  Script.,  torn.  xxiv.  pp.  531, 

533. 

*3  See  a  sensible  notice  of  Hebrew  literature  in  Spain,  in  the  Retro- 
spective Review,  vol.  iii.  p.  209. — Mariana,  Hist,  de  Espafla,  torn.  ii. 
lib.  26,  cap.  1. — Zurita,  Anales,  torn.  v.  fol.  9. — Not  a  few  of  the  learned 
exiles  attained  to  eminence  in  those  countries  of  Europe  where  they 
Vol.  II.— 10  G 


146 


EXPULSION  OF  THE   JEiVS. 


The  whole  number  of  Jews  expelled  from  Spain  by 
Ferdinand  and  Isabella  is  variously  computed  at  from 
one  hundred  and  sixty  thousand  to  eight  hundred  thou- 
sand souls;  a  discrepancy  sufficiently  indicating  the 
paucity  of  authentic  data.  Most  modern  writers,  with 
the  usual  predilection  for  startling  results,  have  assumed 
the  latter  estimate ;  and  Llorente  has  made  it  the  basis 
of  some  important  calculations,  in  his  History  of  the 
Inquisition.  A  view  of  all  the  circumstances  will  lead 
us  without  much  hesitation  to  adopt  the  most  moder- 
ate computation.'*    This,  moreover,  is  placed  beyond 

transferred  their  residence.  One  is  mentioned  by  Castro  as  a  leading 
practitioner  of  medicine  in  Genoa ;  another,  as  filling  the  posts  of  as- 
tronomer  and  chronicler  under  King  Emanuel  of  Portugal.  Many  of 
them  published  works  in  various  departments  of  science,  which  were 
translated  into  the  Spanish  and  other  European  languages.  Biblioteca 
Espaflola,  torn.  i.  pp.  359-372. 

M  From  a  curious  document  in  the  Archives  of  Simancas,  consisting 
of  a  report  made  to  the  Spanish  sovereigns  by  their  accountant-general, 
Quintanilla,  in  1493,  it  would  appear  that  the  population  of  the  king- 
dom of  Castile,  exclusive  of  Granada,  was  then  estimated  at  1,500,000 
vecinos,  or  householders.  (See  Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de  Hist.,  Apend.  no. 
12.)  This,  allowing  four  and  a  half  to  a  family,  would  make  the  whole 
population  6,750,000.  It  appears  from  the  statement  of  Bemaldez  that 
the  kingdom  of  Castile  contained  five-sixths  of  the  whole  number  of 
Jews  in  the  Spanish  monarchy.  This  proportion,  if  800,000  be  received 
as  the  total,  would  amount  in  round  numbers  to  670,000,  or  ten  pei 
cent,  of  the  whole  population  of  the  kingdom.  Now,  it  is  manifestly 
improbable  that  so  large  a  portion  of  the  whole  nation,  conspicuous 
moreover  for  wealth  and  intelligence,  could  have  been  held  so  light  in 
a  political  aspect  as  the  Jews  certainly  were,  or  have  tamely  submitted 
for  so  many  years  to  the  most  wanton  indignities  without  resistance,  or, 
finally,  that  the  Spanish  government  would  have  ventured  on  so  bold 
a  measure  as  the  banishment  of  so  numerous  and  powerful  a  class,  and 
that  too  with  as  few  precautions,  apparently,  as  would  be  required  for 
driving  out  ofthe  country  a  roving  gang  of  gipsies. 


EXPULSION  OF  THE   JEWS, 


M7 


reasonable  doubt  by  the  direct  testimony  of  the  Curate 
of  Los  Palacios.  He  reports  that  a  Jewish  Rabbin,  one 
of  the  exiles,  subsequently  returned  to  Spain,  where  he 
was  baptized  by  him.  This  person,  whom  Bernaldez 
commends  for  his  intelligence,  estimated  the  whole 
number  of  his  unbaptized  countrymen  in  the  dominions 
of  Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  at  the  publication  of  the 
edict,  at  thirty-six  thousand  families.  Another  Jewish 
authority,  quoted  by  the  Curate,  reckoned  them  at 
thirty-five  thousand.  This,  assuming  an  average  of  four 
and  a  half  to  a  family,  gives  the  sum  total  of  about  one 
hundred  and  sixty  thousand  individuals,  agreeably  to 
the  computation  of  Bernaldez.  There  is  little  reason 
for  supposing  that  the  actual  amount  would  suffer 
diminution  in  the  hands  of  either  the  Jewish  or  Cas- 
tilian  authority;  since  the  one  might  naturally  be  led 
to  exaggerate  in  order  to  heighten  sympathy  with  the 
calamities  of  his  nation,  and  the  other  to  magnify  as 
far  as  possible  the  glorious  triumphs  of  the  Cross.'* 

The  detriment  incurred  by  the  state,  however,  is  not 
founded  so  much  on  any  numerical  estimate  as  on  the 
subtraction  of  the  mechanical  skill,  intelligence,  and 
general  resources  of  an  orderly,  industrious  population. 
In  this  view,  the  mischief  was  incalculably  greater  than 
that  inferred  by  the  mere  number  of  the  exiled  \  and, 
although  even  this  might  have  been  gradually  repaired 
in  a  country  allowed  the  free  and  healthful  develop- 
ment of  its  energies,  yet  in  Spain  this  was  so  effectually 
counterat  ted  by  the  Inquisition,  and  other  causes  in 

»S  Bernaldez,  Reyes  Cat61icos,  MS.,  cap.  no. — Llorente,  Hist,  de 
rinquisition,  torn.  i.  chap.  7,  sect.  7. — Mariana,  Hist,  de  Espafla,  torn. 
0.  lib.  36. — Zurita,  Anales,  torn.  v.  fol.  9. 


■  1 


148 


EXPULSION  OF  THE   JEWS. 


the  following  century,  that  the  loss  may  be  deemed 
irretrievable. 

The  expulsion  of  so  numerous  a  class  of  subjects  by 
an  independent  act  of  the  sovereign  might  well  be 
regarded  as  an  enormous  stretch  of  prerogative,  alto- 
gether incompatible  with  any  thing  like  a  free  govern- 
ment. But,  to  judge  the  matter  rightly,  we  must  take 
into  view  the  actual  position  of  the  Jews  at  that  time. 
Far  from  forming  an  integral  part  of  the  commonwealth, 
they  were  regarded  as  alien  to  it,  as  a  mere  excrescence, 
which,  so  far  from  contributing  to  the  healthful  action 
of  the  body  politic,  was  nourished  by  its  vicious  humors, 
and  might  be  lopped  off  at  any  time  when  the  health 
of  the  system  demanded  it.  Far  from  being  protected 
by  the  laws,  the  only  aim  of  the  laws  in  reference  to 
them  was  to  define  more  precisely  their  civil  incapaci- 
ties, and  to  draw  the  line  of  division  more  broadly  be- 
tween them  and  the  Christians.  Even  this  humiliation 
by  no  means  satisfied  the  national  prejudices,  as  is 
evinced  by  the  great  number  of  tumults  and  massacres 
of  which  they  were  the  victims.  In  these  circum- 
stances, it  seemed  to  be  no  great  assumption  of  au- 
thority to  pronounce  sentence  of  exile  against  those 
whom  public  opinion  had  so  long  proscribed  as  enemies 
to  the  state.  It  was  only  carrying  into  effect  that 
opinion,  expressed  as  it  had  been  in  a  great  variety 
of  ways ;  and,  so  far  as  the  rights  of  the  nation  were 
concerned,  the  banishment  of  a  single  Spaniard  would 
have  been  held  a  grosser  violation  of  them  than  that  of 
the  whole  race  of  Israelites, 

It  has  been  common  with  modern  historians  to 
detect  a  principal  motive  for  the  expulsion  of  the  Jews 


EXPULSION  OF  THE   JEWS. 


149 


in  the  avarice  of  the  government.  It  is  only  neces- 
sary, however,  to  transport  ourselves  back  to  those 
times  to  fmd  it  in  perfect  accordance  with  their  spirit, 
at  least  in  Spain.  It  is  indeed  incredible  that  persons 
possessing  the  political  sagacity  of  Ferdinand  and  Isa- 
bella could  indulge  a  temporary  cupidity  at  the  sacrifice 
of  the  most  important  and  permanent  interests,  con- 
verting their  wealthiest  districts  into  a  wilderness  and 
dispeopling  them  of  a  class  of  citizens  who  contributed 
beyond  all  others  not  only  to  the  general  resources 
but  to  the  direct  revenues  of  the  crown;  a  meas- 
ure so  manifestly  unsound  as  to  lead  even  a  barbarian 
monarch  of  that  day  to  exclaim,  "Do  they  call  this 
Ferdinand  a  politic  prince,  who  can  thus  impoverish 
his  own  kingdom  and  enrich  ours?"'*  It  would  seem, 
indeed,  when  the  measure  had  been  determined  on, 
that  the  Aragonese  monarch  was  willing,  by  his  expe- 
dient of  sequestration,  to  control  its  operation  in  such 
a  manner  as  to  secure  to  his  own  subjects  the  full  pe- 
cuniary benefit  of  it.''  No  imputation  of  this  kind 
attaches  to  Castile.  The  clause  of  the  ordinance 
which  might  imply  such  a  design,  by  interdicting  the 
exportation  of  gold  and  silver,  was  only  enforcing  a  law 
which  had  been  already  twice  enacted  by  cortes  in  the 
present  reign,  and  which  was  deemed  of  such  moment 
that  the  offence  was  made  capital." 

»*  Bajazet.  See  Abarca,  Reyes  de  Aragon,  torn.  ii.  p.  310. — Paramo, 
De  Origine  Inquisitionis,  p.  168. 

»7  "  In  truth,"  father  Abarca  somewhat  innocently  remarks,  "  King 
Ferdinand  was  a  politic  Christian,  making  the  interests  of  church  and 
state  mutually  subservient  to  each  other"  I  Reyes  de  Aragon,  tom.  ii. 
fol.  310, 

»8  Once  at  Toledo,  1480,  and  at  Murcia,  1488.  See  Recop.  de  las 
Leyes,  lib.  6,  tit.  18,  ley  i. 


ISO 


EXPULSION  OF  THE   JEWS. 


.M,!l 


We  need  look  no  further  for  the  principle  of  action, 
in  this  case,  than  the  spirit  of  religious  bigotry,  which 
led  to  a  similar  expulsion  of  the  Jews  from  England, 
France,  and  other  parts  of  Europe,  as  well  as  from 
Portugal,  under  circumstances  of  peculiar  atrocity,  a 
few  years  later.''  Indeed,  the  spirit  of  persecution  did 
not  expire  with  the  fifteenth  century,  but  extended  far 
into  the  more  luminous  periods  of  the  seventeenth  and 
eighteenth ;  and  that,  too,  under  a  ruler  of  the  enlarged 
capacity  of  Frederick  the  Great,  whose  intolerance 
could  not  plead  in  excuse  the  blindness  of  fanaticism." 
How  far  the  banishment  of  the  Jews  was  conformable 
to  the  opinions  of  the  most  enlightened  contempo- 
raries, may  be  gathered  from  the  encomiums  lavished 
on  its  authors  from  more  than  one  quarter.  Spanish 
writers,  without  exception,  celebrate  it  as  a  sublime 
sacrifice  of  all  temporal  interests  to  religious  principle. 

'9  The  Portuguese  government  caused  all  children  of  fourteen  years 
of  age,  or  under,  to  be  taken  from  their  parents  and  retained  in  the 
country,  as  fit  subjects  for  a  Christian  education.  The  distress  occa- 
sioned by  this  cruel  provision  may  be  well  imagined.  Many  of  the 
unhappy  parents  murdered  their  children  to  defeat  the  ordinance ;  and 
many  laid  violent  hands  on  themselves.  Faria  y  Sousa  coolly  remarks 
that  "  it  was  a  great  mistake  in  King  Emanuel  to  think  of  converting 
to  Christianity  any  Jew  old  enough  to  pronounce  the  name  of  Moses." 
He  fixes  three  years  of  age  as  the  utmost  limit.  (Europa  Portuguesa, 
torn.  ii.  p.  496.)  Mr.  Turner  has  condensed,  with  his  usual  industry, 
the  most  essentiil  chronological  facts  relative  to  modern  Jewish  his- 
tory, in  a  note  contained  in  the  second  volume  of  his  History  of 
England,  pp.  114-120. 

^  They  were  also  ejected  from  Vienna  in  166  ^.  The  illiberal  and 
indeed  most  cruel  legislation  of  Frederick  \\.  in  reference  to  his  Jew- 
ish subjects  transports  us  back  to  the  darkest  periods  of  the  Visigothic 
monarchy.  Tlie  eader  will  find  a  summary  of  these  enactments  in 
the  third  volume  of  Milman's  agreeable  History  of  the  Jews. 


W 


EXPULSION   OF   THE    JEWS. 


151 


The  best-instructed  foreigners,  in  like  manner,  how- 
ever they  may  condemn  the  details  of  its  execution  or 
commiserate  the  sufferings  of  the  Jews,  commend  the 
act,  as  evincing  the  most  lively  and  laudable  zeal  for 
the  true  faith." 

It  cannot  be  denied  that  Spain  at  this  period  sur- 
passed most  of  the  nations  of  Christendom  in  religious 
enthusiasm,  or,  to  speak  more  correctly,  in  bigotry. 
This  is  doubtless  imputable  to  the  long  war  with  the 
Moslems,  and  its  recent  glorious  issue,  which  swelled 
every  heart  with  exultation,  disposing  it  to  consum- 
mate the  triumphs  of  the  Cross  by  purging  the  land 
from  a  heresy  which,  strange  as  it  may  seem,  was 
scarcely  less  detested  than  that  of  Mahomet.  Both  the 
sovereigns  partook  largely  of  these  feelings.  With 
regard  to  Isabella,  moreover,  it  must  be  borne  con- 
stantly in  mind,  as  has  been  repeatedly  remarked  in 
the  course  of  this  history,  that  she  had  been  used  to 
surrender  her  own  judgment  in  matters  of  conscience  to 
those  spiritual  guardians  who  were  supposed  in  tha''  cge 
to  be  its  rightful  depositaries,  and  the  only  casuists 
who  could  safely  determine  the  doubtful  line  of  d:iy. 
Isabella's  pious  disposition,  and  her  trembling  solici!:  ide 

"  The  accomplished  and  amiable  Florentine,  Pico  di  M  rii  'Joi.t,  in 
his  treatise  on  Judicial  Astrology,  remarks  that  "  the  suffer!:;,  of  the 
]c\s%,  in  which  the  glory  of  divine  justice  di'lighted,\\'Lce  so  e.xir Tac 
as  to  fill  us  Christians  with  commiseration."  The  Genoese  historian 
Senarega,  indeed,  admits  that  the  measure  savored  0/  some  slight 
degree  0/ cruelty :  "  Res  haec  primo  conspectu  laudabilis  visa  t  -.i,  quia 
decus  nostraa  Religionis  respiceret,  sed  alit|u;intulum  in  se  cruiLliiatis 
continere,  si  eos  non  belluas,  sed  homines  a  Deo  creates,  consideravi- 
mus."  De  Rebus  Genuensibv.s,  apud  Muratori,  Rorum  Ital.  Script., 
torn.  xxiv. — Illescas,  Hist.  Pontif.,  apud  Paramo,  De  Origine,  Inqui- 
sitionis,  p.  167. 


'52 


EXPULSION  OF  THE   JEWS. 


i 


to  discharge  her  duty  at  whatever  cost  of  personal 
inclination,  greatly  enforced  the  precepts  of  education. 
In  this  way,  her  very  virtues  became  the  source  of  her 
errors.  Unfortunately,  she  lived  in  an  age  and  station 
which  attached  to  these  errors  the  most  momentous 
consequences." — But  we  gladly  turn  from  these  dark 
prospects  to  a  brighter  page  of  her  history. 

»»  Llorente  sums  up  his  account  of  the  expulsion  by  assigning  the 
following  motives  to  the  principal  agents  in  the  business.  "  The  meas- 
ure," he  says,  "  may  be  referred  to  the  fanaticism  of  Torquemada,  to 
the  avarice  and  superstition  of  Ferdinanr*  to  the  false  ideas  and  in- 
considerate zeal  with  which  they  had  inspi.vc.  Isabella,  to  whom  history 
cannot  refuse  the  praise  of  great  sweetness  of  disposition  and  an 
enlightened  mind."    Hist,  de  I'lnquisition,  torn.  i.  ch.  7,  sec.  10. 


CHAPTER   XVIII. 

ATTEMPTED    ASSASSINATION    OF   FERDINAND. — RETURN 
AND    SECOND   VOYAGE   OF   COLUMBUS. 

I492-I493. 

Attempt  on  Ferdinand's  Life. — Consternafirn  and  Loyalty  of  the 
People. — Return  of  Columbus. — His  Progress  to  Barcelona. — Inter- 
views with  the  Sovereigns. — Sensations  caused  by  the  Discovery. 
—  Regulation  of  Trade. — Conversion  of  the  Natives. — Famous 
Bulls  of  Alexander  VL — Jealousy  of  Portugal. — Second  Voyage  df 
Columbus. — Treaty  of  Tordesillas. 

Towards  the  latter  end  of  May,  1492,  the  Spanish 
sovereigns  quitted  Granada,  between  which  and  Santa 
Fe  they  had  divided  their  time  since  the  surrender  of 
the  Moorish  metropolis.  They  were  occupied  during 
the  two  following  months  with  the  affairs  of  Castile. 
In  August  they  visited  Aragon,  proposing  to  establish 
their  winter  residence  there,  in  order  to  provide  fc^r  its 
internal  admin i  'ration  and  conclude  the  negotiations 
for  the  final  surrender  of  Roussillon  and  Cerdagne  by 
France,  to  which  these  provinces  had  been  mortgaged 
by  Ferdinand's  father,  John  the  Second  ;  proving  ever 
since  a  fruitful  source  of  diplomacy,  which  threatened 
more  than  once  to  terminate  in  open  rupture. 

Ferdinand  and  Isabella  arrived  in  Aragon  on  the 
8th  of  August,  accompanied  by  Prince  John  and  the 
infantas  and  a  brilliant  train  of  Castilian  nobles.  In 
their  progress  tlirough  the  country  they  were  every- 

"*  (153) 


'1 


.    i^. 


,1    ' 


i 


III 


154 


HE'JU/iN  OF  COLUMBUS. 


where  received  with  the  most  lively  enthusiasm.  The 
whole  nation  seemed  to  abandon  itself  to  jubilee  at  the 
approach  of  its  illustrious  sovereigns,  whose  heroic 
constancy  had  rescued  Spain  from  the  detested  empire 
of  the  Saracens.  After  devoting  some  months  to  the 
internal  police  of  the  kingdom,  the  court  transferred  its 
residence  to  Catalonia,  whose  capital  it  reached  about 
the  miJdle  of  October.  During  its  detention  in  this 
place,  f  cidinand's  career  was  wellnigh  brought  to  an 
untinwn^-  close.' 

It  was  a  good  old  custom  of  Catalonia,  long  since 
fall'Mi  ir.'o  desuetude,  for  the  monarch  to  preside  in  the 
trib'vrils  of  justice  at  least  once  a  week,  for  the  purpose 
of  dcif  raiing  the  suits  of  the  poorer  clast-es  especially, 
who  couid  not  afford  the  more  expensive  forms  of 
litigation.  King  Ferdinand,  in  conformity  with  this 
usage,  held  a  court  in  the  house  of  deputation,  on  the 
7th  of  December,  being  the  vigil  of  the  Conception 
of  the  Virgin.  At  noon,  as  he  was  preparing  to  quit 
the  palace,  after  the  conclusion  of  business,  he  lin- 
gered in  the  rear  of  his  retinue,  conversing  with  some 
of  the  officers  of  the  court.  As  the  party  was  issuing 
from  a  little  chapel  contiguous  to  the  royal  saloon, 
and  just  as  the  kins;  was  descending  a  flight  of  stairs,  a 
ruffian  darted  fr<  vn  an  obscure  recess  in  which  he  had 
concealed  himself  early  in  the  morning,  and  aimed  a 
blow  with  a  short  sword,  or  kriic,  ai  the  back  of  Fer- 
dinand's neck.  Fortunately  the  edge  of  the  weapon 
was  turned  by  a  gold  chain  or  collar  which  he  was  in 
the  habit  of  wearing.     It  inflicted,  however,  a  deep 

»  Zurita,  Anales,  torn.  v.  fol.  13.— Oviedo,  Quincuagenas,  MS.,  bat.  i, 
quinc.  i,  dial.  28. 


ir 
I 


SECOND    VOYAGE. 


15s 


wound  between  the  shoulders.  Ferdinand  instantly 
cried  out,  **St.  Mary  preserve  us !  treason!  treason!" 
and  his  attendants,  rushing  on  the  assassin,  stabbed  him 
in  three  places  with  their  poniards,  and  would  have 
despatched  him  on  the  spot,  had  not  the  king,  with  his 
usual  presence  of  mind,  commanded  them  to  desist^ 
and  take  the  man  alive,  that  they  might  ascertain  the, 
real  authors  of  the  conspiracy.  This  was  done  accord- 
ingly, and  Ferdinand,  fainting  with  loss  of  blood,  was 
carefully  removed  to  his  apartments  in  the  royal  palace.' 
The  report  of  the  catastrophe  spread  like  wildfire 
through  the  city.  All  classes  were  thrown  into  con- 
sternation by  so  foul  an  act,  which  seemed  to  cast  a 
stain  on  the  honor  and  good  faith  of  the  Catalans. 
Some  suspected  it  to  be  the  work  of  a  vindictive  Moor, 
others  of  a  disappointed  courtier.  The  queen,  who  had 
swooned  on  first  receiving  intelligence  of  the  event, 
suspected  the  ancient  enmity  of  the  Catalans,  who  had 
shown  such  determined  opposition  to  her  husband  in 
his  early  youth.  She  gave  instant  orders  to  hold  in 
readiness  one  of  the  galleys  lying  in  the  port,  in  order 
to  transport  her  childi*en  from  the  place,  as  she  feared 

•  Zurita,  Anales,  lorn.  v.  fol.  15. — Bernaldez,  Reyes  Catolicos,  MS., 
cap.  116. — Garibay,  Compendio,  torn.  ii.  pp.  678,  679. — Abarca,  Reyes 
de  Aragon,  torn.  ii.  fol.  315. — Carbajal,  Anales,  MS.,  ano  1492. — Ovi- 
edo,  Quincuagenas,  MS.,  bat.  i,  quinc.  4,  dial.  9. — A  brief  account  of 
this  event,  with  a  very  long  and  ostentatious  commentary  on  its  enor- 
mity, is  to  be  found  in  a  rare  and  curious  old  volume,  entitled  "  Los 
Tratados  del  Doctor  Alonso  Ortiz,"  printed  at  Seville  in  1493,  the  same 
year  with  the  intended  assassination.  The  writer,  a  canon  of  the 
metropolitan  church  of  Toledo,  pours  forth  a  flood  of  eloquence  on 
this  occasion,  in  a  discourse  addressed  to  the  Catholic  sovereign, 
which,  whatever  merit  it  may  have  in  a  rhetorical  point  of  view,  bears 
abundant  testimony  to  his  loyalty. 


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>S6 


RETURN  OF  COLUMBUS. 


the  conspiracy  might  be  designed  to  embrace  other 
victims.' 

The  populace,  in  the  mean  while,  assembled  in  great 
numbers  round  the  palace  where  the  king  lay.  All 
feelings  of  hostility  had  long  since  given  way  to  de- 
voted loyalty  towards  a  government  which  had  uni- 
formly respected  the  liberties  of  its  subjects,  and  whose 
paternal  sway  had  secured  similar  blessings  to  Barcelona 
with  the  rest  of  the  empire.  They  thronged  round  the 
building,  crying  out  that  the  king  was  slain,  and  de- 
manding that  his  murderers  should  be  delivered  up  to 
them.  Ferdinand,  exhausted  as  he  was,  would  have 
presented  himself  at  the  window  of  his  apartment,  but 
was  prevented  from  making  the  effort  by  his  physicians. 
It  was  with  great  difficulty  that  the  people  were  at 
length  satisfied  that  he  was  still  living,  and  that  they 
finally  consented  to  disperse,  on  the  assurance  that  the 
assassin  should  be  brought  to  condign  punishment. 

The  king's  wound,  which  did  not  appear  dangerous 
at  first,  gradually  exhibited  more  alarming  symptoms. 
One  of  the  bones  was  found  to  be  fractured,  and  a  part 
of  it  was  removed  by  the  surgeons.  On  the  seventh 
day  his  situation  was  considered  extremely  critical. 
During  this  time  the  queen  was  constantly  by  his  side, 
watching  with  him  day  and  night,  and  administering 

3  Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  epist.  125. — Bemaldez,  Reyes  Cat61i- 
cos,  MS.,  cap.  116. — Abarca,  Reyes  de  Aragon,  ubi  supra. — The  great 
bell  of  Velllla,  whose  miraculous  tolling  always  announced  some  dis- 
aster to  the  monarchy,  was  heard  to  strike  at  the  time  of  this  assault 
on  Ferdinand,  being  the  fifth  time  since  the  subversion  of  the  kingdom 
by  the  Moors.  The  fourth  was  on  the  assassination  of  the  inquisitor 
Arbues.  All  which  is  established  by  a  score  of  good  orthodo.x  wit- 
nesses, as  reported  by  Dr.  Diego  Dormer,  in  his  Discursos  varios,  pf). 
206,  207 


SECOND    VOYAGE. 


157 


all  his  medicines  with  her  own  hand.  At  length,  the 
unfavorable  symptoms  yielded  ;  and  his  excellent  con- 
stitution enabled  him  so  far  to  recover,  that  in  less  than 
three  weeks  he  was  able  to  show  himself  to  the  eyes 
of  his  anxious  subjects,  who  gave  themselves  up  to  a 
delirium  of  joy,  offering  thanksgivings  and  grateful 
oblations  in  the  churches ;  while  many  a  pilgrimage, 
which  had  been  vowed  for  his  restoration  to  health, 
was  performed  by  the  good  people  of  Barcelona,  with 
naked  feet,  and  even  on  their  knees,  among  the  wild 
sierras  that  surround  the  city. 

The  author  of  the  crime  proved  to  be  a  peasant, 
about  sixty  years  of  age,  of  that  humble  class,  de  re- 
menza,  as  it  was  termed,  which  Ferdinand  had  been 
instrumental  some  few  years  before  in  releasing  from  the 
baser  and  more  grinding  pains  of  servitude.  The  man 
appeared  to  be  insane ;  alleging,  in  vindication  of  his 
conduct,  that  he  was  the  rightful  proprietor  of  the 
crown,  which  he  expected  to  obtain  by  Ferdinand's 
.death.  He  declared  himself  willing,  however,  to  give 
up  his  pretensions,  on  condition  of  being  set  at  liberty. 
The  king,  convinced  of  his  alienation  of  mind,  would 
have  discharged  him ;  but  the  Catalans,  indignant  at  the 
reproach  which  such  a  crime  seemed  to  attach  to  their 
own  honor,  and  perhaps  distrusting  the  plea  of  insanity, 
thought  it  necessary  to  expiate  it  by  the  blood  of  the 
offender,  and  condemned  the  unhappy  wretch  to  the 
dreadful  doom  of  a  traitor;  the  preliminary  barbarities 
of  the  sentence,  however,  were  remitted,  at  the  inter- 
cession of  the  queen.* 

4  Tratados  del  Doctor  Alonso  Ortiz,  Tratado  primero. — L.  Marineo, 
Cosas  memorables,  fol.  i86. —  Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  epist.  125, 127, 


IS8 


HE  TURN  OF  COLUMBUS. 


In  the  spring  of  1493,  while  the  court  was  still  at 
Barcelona,  letters  were  received  from  Christopher 
Columbus,  announcing  his  return  to  Spain,  and  the 
successful  achievement  of  his  great  enterprise,  by  the 
disc  overy  of  land  beyond  the  western  ocean.  The  de- 
light and  astonishment  raised  by  this  intelligence  were 
proportioned  to  the  skepticism  with  which  his  project 
had  been  originally  viewed.  The  sovereigns  were  now 
filled  with  a  natural  impatience  to  a  , certain  the  extent 
and  other  particulars  of  the  important  discovery;  and 
they  transmitted  instant  instructions  to  the  admiral  to 
repair  to  Barcelona  as  soon  as  he  should  have  made  the 
preliminary  arrangements  for  the  further  prosecution 
of  his  enterprise.' 

The  great  navigator  had  succeeded,  as  is  well  known. 


131. — Zurita,  Anales,  torn.  v.  fol.  16, — Bernaldez,  Reyes  Catolicos,  MS., 
loc.  cit. — Garibay,  after  hanov  Ing  the  reader's  feelings  with  half  a 
column  of  inhuman  cruelties  mflictcd  on  the  miserable  man,  concludes 
with  the  comfortable  assa.ance,  "  Pcro  ahogaronle  primero  por  clemen- 
cia  y  misericordia  de  la  Reyna."  (Compendio,  torn.  ii.  lib.  19,  cap,  i.) 
A  letter  written  by  Isabella  to  her  confessor,  Fernando  dc  Talavera, 
during  her  husband's  illness,  shows  the  deep  anxiety  of  her  own  mind, 
as  well  as  that  of  the  citizens  of  Barcelona,  at  his  critical  situation,  fur- 
nishing abundant  evidence,  if  it  were  needed,  of  her  tenderness  of  heart 
and  the  warmth  of  her  conjugal  attachment.  See  Correspondencia 
epistolar,  apud  Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de  Hist.,  torn.  vi.  Ilust,  13. 

5  Herrera,  Indias  occiduntalcs,  -Jec.  i,  lib.  2,  cap.  3. — Mufioz,  Hist. 
del  Nuevo-Mundo,  lib.  4,  sect.  13,  14. — Columbus  concludes  a  letter 
addressed,  on  his  arrival  at  Lisbon,  to  the  treasurer  Sanchez,  in  the 
following  glowing  terms :  "  Let  processions  be  made,  festivals  held, 
temples  filled  with  branches  and  flowers,  for  Christ  rejoices  on  earth 
as  in  heaven,  seeing  the  future  redemption  of  souls.  Let  us  rejoice, 
also,  for  the  temporal  benefit  likely  tp  result,  not  merely  to  Spain,  but 
to  all  Christendom."  See  Primer  Viage  de  Colon,  apud  Navarrete, 
Coleccion  de  Viages,  torn.  i. 


ShCOND    VOYAGE. 


>59 


after  a  voyage  the  natural  difficulties  of  which  had  been 
nuich  augmented  by  the  distrust  and  mutinous  spirit  of 
his  followers,  in  descrying  land  on  Friday,  the  i2th 
of  October,  1492.  After  some  months  spent  in  ex- 
ploring the  delightful  regions  now  for  the  first  time 
thrown  open  to  the  eyes  of  a  European,  he  embarked 
in  the  month  of  January,  1493,  for  Spain.  One  of 
his  vessels  had  previously  foundered,  and  an<  had 

deserted  him;  so  that  he  was  left  alone  to  rcuace  his 
course  across  the  Atlantic.  After  a  most  tempestuous 
voyage,  he  was  compelled  to  take  shelter  in  tlie  Tagus, 
sorely  against  his  inclination.*  He  experienced,  how- 
ever, the  most  honorable  reception  from  the  Portuguese 
monarch,  John  the  Second,  who  did  ample  justice  to 
the  great  qualities  of  Columbus,  although  he  had  failed 
to  profit  by  them.'    After  a  brief  delay,  the  admiral 

*  Herrera,  Indias  occidentales,  torn.  i.  dec.  i,  lib.  2,  cap.  2. — Primer 
Viage  de  Colon,  apud  Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Viages,  torn.  i. — Fer- 
nando Colon,  Hist,  del  Almiranle,  cap.  39. — The  Portuguese  historian, 
Faria  y  Sousa,  appears  to  be  nettled  at  the  prosperous  issue  of  the  voy- 
age; for  he  testily  remarks  that  "the  admiral  entered  Lisbon  with  a 
vainglorious  e.\ultation,  in  order  to  make  Portugal  feel,  by  displaying 
the  tokens  of  his  discovery,  how  much  she  had  erred  in  not  acceding 
to  his  propositions."     Europa  Portuguesa,  torn.  ii.  pp.  462,  463. 

7  My  learned  friend  Mr.  John  Pickering  has  pointed  out  to  me  a 
passage  in  a  Portuguese  author  giving  some  particulars  of  Columbus's 
visit  to  Portugal.  The  passage,  which  1  have  not  seen  noticed  by  any 
writer,  is  extremely  interesting,  coming,  as  it  does,  from  a  person  high 
in  the  roy;U  confidence,  and  an  eye-witness  of  what  he  relates.  "  In  the 
year  1493,  on  the  sixth  day  of  March,  arrived  in  Lisbon  Christopher 
Columbus,  an  Italian,  who  came  from  the  discovery,  made  under  the 
authority  of  the  sovereigns  of  Castile,  of  the  islands  of  Cipango  and 
Antilia ;  from  which  countries  he  brought  with  him  the  first  specimens 
of  the  people,  as  well  as  of  the  gold  and  other  things  to  be  found  there ; 
and  he  was  entitled  admiral  of  them.    The  king,  bemg  forthwith  in- 


•  !•; 


^^ 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


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1.1 


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Hiotographic 

SoHices 

Corporation 


23  WIST  MUIN  STREET 

WnSTM,N.Y.  M5S0 

(716)S72-4503 


x6o 


RETURN  OF  COLUMBUS. 


resumed  his  voyage,  and,  crossing  the  bar  of  Saltes, 
entered  the  harbor  of  Faios  about  noon  on  the  15th 
of  March,  i493>  being  exactly  seven  months  and  eleven 
days  since  his  departure  from  that  port.' 

Great  was  the  agitation  in  the  little  community 
of  Palos  as  they  beheld  the  well-known  vessel  of  the 
admiral  re-entering  their  harbor.     Their  desponding 

formed  of  this,  commanded  him  into  his  presence ;  and  appeared  to  be 
annoyed  and  vexed,  as  well  from  the  belief  that  the  said  discovery  was 
made  within  the  seas  and  boundaries  of  his  seigniory  of  Guinea, — 
which  might  give  rise  to  disputes, — as  because  the  said  admiral,  having 
become  somewhat  haughty  by  his  situation,  and  in  the  relation  of  his 
adventures  always  exceeding  the  bounds  of  truth,  made  this  affair,  as 
to  gold,  silver,  and  riches,  much  greater  than  it  was.  Elspecially  did 
the  king  accuse  himself  of  negligence,  in  having  declined  this  enter- 
prise, when  Columbus  first  came  to  ask  his  assistance,  from  want  of 
credit  and  confidence  in  it.  And,  notwithstanding  the  king  was  im- 
portuned to  kill  him  on  the  spot ;  since  with  his  death  the  prosecution 
of  the  undertaking,  so  far  as  the  sovereigns  of  Castile  were  concerned, 
would  cease,  from  want  of  a  suitable  person  to  take  charge  of  it ;  and 
notwithstanding  this  might  be  done  without  suspicion  of  the  king's 
being  privy  to  it, — for  inasmuch  as  the  admiral  was  overbearing  and 
puffed  up  by  his  success,  they  might  easily  bring  it  about  that  his  own 
indiscretion  should  appear  the  occasion  of  his  death, — yet  the  king, 
as  he  was  a  prince  greatly  fearing  God,  not  only  forbade  this,  but  even 
showed  the  admiral  honor  and  much  favor,  and  therewith  dismissed 
him."  Ruy  de  Pina,  Chronica  d'el  Rei  Dom  Joao  II.,  cap.  66,  apud 
Collec9ao  de  Uvros  ineditos  de  Historia  Portugueza  (Lisboa,  1790-93), 
torn.  ii. 

8  Fernando  Colon,  Hist,  del  Almirante,  cap.  40,  41. — Charlevoix, 
Histoire  de  S.  Domingue  (Paris,  1730),  torn.  i.  pp.  84-90. — Primer 
Viage  de  Colon,  apud  Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Viages,  torn.  i. — La 
Clftde,  Hist,  de  Portugal,  tom.  iv.  pp.  53-58.— Columbus  sailed  from 
Spain  on  Friday,  discovered  land  on  Friday,  and  re-entered  the  port 
of  Palos  on  Friday.  These  curious  coincidences  should  have  sufficed, 
one  might  think,  to  dispel,  especially  with  American  mariners,  the 
superstitious  dread,  still  so  prevalent,  of  commencing  a  voyage  on  that 
ominous  day. 


—  ■ ■■  ^x-mmimmm  ■» 


SECOND    VOYAGE, 


l6i 


imaginations  had  long  since  consigned  him  to  a  watery 
grave;  for,  in  addition  to  the  preternatural  horrors 
which  hung  over  the  voyage,  they  had  experienced  the 
most  stormy  and  disastrous  winter  within  the  recollec- 
tion of  the  oldest  mariners.'  Most  of  them  had  relatives 
or  friends  on  board.  They  thronged  immediately  to 
the  shore,  to  assure  themselves  with  their  own  eyes 
of  the  truth  of  their  return.  When  they  beheld  their 
faces  once  more,  and  saw  them  accompanied  by  the 
numerous  evidences  which  they  brought  back  of  the 
success  of  the  expedition,  they  burst  forth  in  acclama- 
tions of  joy  and  gratulation.  They  awaited  the  landing 
of  Columbus,  when  the  whole  population  of  the  place' 
accompanied  him  and  his  crew  to  the  principal  church,, 
where  solemn  thanksgivings  were  offered  up  for  their 
return ;  while  every  bell  in  the  village  sent  forth  a 
joyous  peal  in  honor  of  the  glorious  event.  The  ad- 
miral was  too  desirous  of  presenting  himself  before  the 
sovereigns,  to  protract  his  stay  long  at  Palos.  He  took 
with  him  on  his  journey  specimens  of  the  multifarious 
products  of  the  newly-discovered  regions.  He  was  ac- 
companied by  several  of  the  native  islanders,  arrayed 
in  their  simple  barbaric  costume,  and  decorated,  as  he 
passed  through  the  principal  cities,  with  collars,  brace- 
lets, and  other  ornaments  of  gold,  rudely  fashioned ; 
he  exhibited  also  considerable  quantities  of  the  same 
metal  in  dust,  or  in  crude  masses,"  numerous  vegetable 

9  Primer  Viage  de  Colon,  Let.  a. 

»  Mufloz,  Hist,  del  Nuevo-Mundo,  Hb.  4,  sec.  14. — Fernando  Colon, 
Hist,  del  Almirante,  cap.  41. — Among  other  specimens  was  a  lump  of 
gold  of  sufficient  magnitude  to  be  fashioned  into  a  vessel  for  contain- 
ing the  host;  "  thus,"  says  Salazar  de  Mendoza,  "  converting  the  first- 
fruits  of  the  new  dominions  to  pious  uses."  Monarquia,  pp.  351,  352. 
Vol.  II.— II 


i6a 


RETURN  OF  COLUMBUS. 


Ill 

.11 


exotics,  possessed  of  aromatic  or  medicinal  virtue,  and 
several  kinds  of  quadrupeds  unknown  in  Europe,  and 
birds  whose  varieties  of  gaudy  plumage  gave  a  brilliant 
effect  to  the  pageant.  The  admiral's  progress  through 
the  country  was  everywhere  impeded  by  the  multitudes 
thronging  forth  to  gaze  at  the  extraordinary  spectacle, 
and  the  more  extraordinary  man,  who,  in  the  emphatic 
language  of  that  time,  which  has  now  lost  its  force  from 
its  familiarity,  first  revealed  the  existence  of  a  "New 
World."  As  he  passed  through  the  busy,  populous  city 
of  Seville,  every  window,  balcony,  and  housetop  which 
could  afford  a  glimpse  of  him  is  described  to  have  been 
crowded  with  spectators.  It  was  the  middle  of  April 
before  Columbus  reached  Barcelona.  The  nobility  and 
cavaliers  in  attendance  on  the  court,  together  with  the 
authorities  of  the  city,  came  to  the  gates  to  receive 
him,  and  escorted  him  to  the  royal  presence.  Ferdi- 
nand and  Isabella  were  seated,  with  their  son.  Prince 
John,  under  a  superb  canopy  of  state,  awaiting  his 
arrival.  On  his  approach,  they  rose  from  their  seats, 
and,  extending  their  hands  to  him  to  salute,  caused 
him  to  be  seated  before  them.  These  were  unpre- 
cedented marks  of  condescension  to  a  person  of  Colum- 
bus's rank,  in  the  haughty  and  ceremonious  court  of 
Castile.  It  was,  indeed,  the  proudest  moment  in  the 
life  of  Columbus.  He  had  fully  established  the  truth 
of  his  long-contested  theory,  in  the  face  of  argument, 
sophistry,  sneer,  skepticism,  and  contempt.  He  had 
achieved  this,  not  by  chance,  but  by  calculation  sup- 
ported througli  the  most  adverse  circumstances  by 
consummate  conduct.  The  honors  paid  him,  which 
had  hitherto  been  reserved  only  for  rank,  or  fortune, 


SECOND    VOYAGE. 


163 


id 

d 

It 

h 

;s 

'» 
c 
a 
w 

Y 
1 
\ 


or  military  success,  purchased  by  the  blood  and  tears 
of  thousands,  were  in  his  case  a  homage  to  intellectual 
power  successfully  exerted  in  behalf  of  the  noblest  in- 
terests of  humanity." 

After  a  brief  interval,  the  sovereigns  requested  from 
Columbus  a  recital  of  his  adventures.  His  manner 
was  sedate  and  dignified,  but  warmed  by  the  glow  of 
natural  enthusiasm.  He  enumerated  the  several  islands 
which  he  had  visited,  expatiated  on  the  temperate 
character  of  the  climate,  and  the  capacity  of  the  soil 
for  every  variety  of  agricultural  production,  appealing 
to  the  samples  imported  by  him  as  evidence  of  their 
natural  fruitfulness.  He  dwelt  more  at  large  on  the 
precious  metals  to  be  found  in  these  islands,  which 
he  inferred,  less  from  the  specimens  actually  obtained, 
than  from  the  uniform  testimony  of  the  natives  to  their 
abundance  in  the  unexplored  regions  of  the  interior. 
Lastly,  he  pointed  out  the  wide  scope  afforded  to 
Christian  i.eal,  in  the  illumination  of  a  race  of  men 
whose  minds,  far  from  being  wedded  to  any  system  of 
idolatry,  were  prepared  by  their  extreme  simplicity  for 
the  reception  of  pure  and  uncorrupted  doctrine.  The 
last  consideration  touched  Isabella's  heart  most  sen- 
sibly; and  the  whole  audience,  kindled  with  various 
emotions  by  the  speaker's  eloquence,  filled  up  the 
perspective  with  the  gorgeous  coloring  of  their  own 
fancies,  as  ambition,  or  avarice,  or  devotional  feeling 

"  Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  epist.  133, 134, 140. — Bemaldez,  Reyes 
Catolicos,  MS.,  cap.  118.— Ferreras,  Hist.  d'Espagne,  torn.  viii.  pp.  141, 
X42. — Fernando  Colon,  Hist,  del  Almirante,  ubi  supra. — Zuftiga,  An- 
nales  de  Sevilla,  p.  413. — Gomara,  Hist,  de  las  Indias,  cap.  17. — Ben- 
zoni,  Novi  Orbis  Hist.,  lib.  i,  cap.  8, 9. — Gallo,  apud  Muratori,  Rerutn 
Ital.  Script.,  torn,  xxiii,  p.  203. 


I 
m 


164. 


RETURN  OF  COLUMBUS. 


predominated  in  their  bosoms.  When  Columbus  ceased, 
the  king  and  queen,  together  with  all  present,  pros- 
trated themselves  on  their  knees  in  grateful  thanks- 
givings, while  the  solemn  strains  of  the  Te  Deum  were 
poured  forth  by  the  choir  of  the  royal  chapel,  as  in 
commemoration  of  some  glorious  victory." 

The  discoveries  of  Columbus  excited  a  sensation, 
particularly  among  men  of  science,  in  the  most  distant 
parts  of  Europe,  strongly  contrasting  with  the  apathy 
which  had  preceded  them.  They  congratulated  one 
another  on  being  reserved  for  an  age  which  had  wit- 
nessed the  consummation  of  so  grand  an  event.  The 
learned  Martyr,  who,  in  his  multifarious  correspond- 
ence, had  not  even  deigned  to  notice  the  preparations 
for  the  voyage  of  discovery,  now  lavished  the  most 
unbounded  panegyric  on  its  re^^ults ;  which  he  con- 
templated with  the  eye  of  a  philosopher,  having  far  less 
reference  to  considerations  of  profit  or  policy  than  to 
the  prospect  which  they  unfolded  of  enlarging  the 
boundaries  of  knowledge. *'    Most  of  the  scholars  of 

»»  Herrera,  Indias  occidentales,  torn.  i.  dec.  i,  lib,  2,  cap.  3. — 
Mufloz,  Hist,  del  Nuevo-Mundo,  lib.  4,  sec.  15,  16,  17. — Fernando 
Colon,  Hist,  del  Almirante,  ubi  supra. 

>3  In  a  letter  written  soon  after  the  admiral's  return,  Martyr  an- 
nounces the  discovery  to  his  correspondent,  Cardinal  Sforza,  in  the 
following  manner :  "  Mira  res  ex  eo  terrarum  orbe,  quem  sol  horarum 
quatuor  et  viginti  spatio  circuit,  ad  nostra  usque  tempora,  quod  minime 
te  latet,  trita  cognitaque  dimidia  tantum  pars,  ab  Aurea  utpote  Cherso- 
neso,  ad  Gades  nostras  Hispanas,  reliqua  vero  a  cosmographis  pro  in- 
cognitA  relicta  est.  Et  si  quae  mentio  facta,  ea  tenuis  et  incerta.  Nunc 
autem,  o  beatum  facinus  1  meonim  regum  auspiciis,  quod  latuit  hac- 
tenus  a  rerum  primordio,  intelligi  cceptum  est."  In  a  subsequent 
epistle  to  the  learned  Pomponio  Leto,  he  breaks  out  in  a  strain  of  warm 
and  generous  sentiment :  "  Prae  Isetitia  prosiliisse  te,  vixque  a  lachiy- 


SECOND    VOYAGE. 


i6S 


the  day,  however,  adopted  the  erroneous  hypothesis  of 
Columbus,  who  considered  the  lands  he  had  discovered 
as  bordering  on  the  eastern  shores  of  Asia,  and  lying 
adjacent  to  the  vast  and  opulent  regions  depicted  in 
such  golden  colors  by  Mandeville  and  the  Poli.  This 
conjecture,  which  was  conformable  to  the  admiral's 
opinions  before  undertaking  the  voyage,  was  cor- 
roborated by  the  apparent  similarity  between  various 
natural  productions  of  these  islands  and  of  the  East. 
From  this  misapprehension,  the  new  dominions  soon 
came  to  be  distinguished  as  the  West  Indies,  an  appel- 
lation by  which  they  are  still  recognized  in  the  titles  of 
the  Spanish  crown.** 

Columbus,  during  his  residence  at  Barcelona,  con- 
tinued to  receive  from  the  Spanish  sovereigns  the 
most  honorable  distinctions  which  royal  bounty  could 

mis  prse  gaudio  tetnperasse,  quando  literas  adspexisti  meas,  quibus  de 
Antipodum  Orbe  latent!  hactenus,  te  certiorem  feci,  mi  suavissime 
Pomponi.'insinuasti.  Ex  tuis  ipse  Uteris  coUigo,  quid  senseris.  Sen- 
sisti  autem,  tantique  rem  fecisti,  quanti  virum  summa  doctrina  insig- 
nitum  decuit.  Quis  namque  cibus  sublimibus  praestari  potest  ingeniis 
isto  suavior?  quod  condimentum  gravius?  a  me  facie  conjecturam. 
Beari  sentio  spiritus  meos,  quando  accitos  alioquor  prudentes  aliquos 
ex  his  qui  ab  eS.  redeunt  provincid.  Implicent  animos  pecuniarum 
cumulis  augendis  miseri  avari,  libidinibus  obscoeni ;  nostras  nos  mentes, 
postquam  Deo  pleni  aliquandiu  fuerimus,  contemplando,  hujuscemodi 
rerum  notitia  demulceamus."    Opus  Epist.,  epist.  124,  152. 

"4  Bemaldez,  Reyes  Cat61icos,  MS.,  cap.  118. — Gallo,  apud  Mura- 
tori,  Rerum  Ital.  Script.,  torn,  xxiii.  p.  203. — Gomara,  Hist,  de  las  In- 
dias,  cap.  18. — Peter  Martyr  seems  to  have  received  the  popular  infer- 
ence, respecting  the  identity  of  the  new  discoveries  with  the  East  Indies, 
with  some  distrust :  "  Insulas  reperit  plures ;  has  esse,  de  quibus  fit 
apud  cosraographos  mentio  extra  Oceanum  Orientalem,  adjacentes 
Indiae  arbhrantur.  Nee  inficior  ego  penitus,  quamvis  sphaerae  magni- 
tudo  aliter  sentire  videatur ;  neque  enim  desunt  qui  parvo  tractu  a  fini- 
bus  Ilispanis  dlstare  littus  Indicuni,  putent."    Opus  Epist.,  epist.  135. 


1 66 


RETURN  OF  COLUMBUS. 


ii! 


confer.  When  Ferdinand  rode  abroad,  he  was  accom- 
panied by  the  admiral  at  his  side.  The  courtiers,  in 
emulation  of  their  master,  made  frequent  entertain- 
ments, at  which  he  was  treated  with  the  punctilious 
deference  paid  to  a  noble  of  the  highest  class.'*  But 
the  attentions  most  grateful  to  his  lofty  spirit  were  the 
preparations  of  the  Spanish  court  for  prosecuting  his 
discoveries  on  a  scale  commensurate  with  their  impor- 
tance. A  board  was  established  for  the  direction  of 
Indian  affairs,  consisting  of  a  superintendent  and  two 
subordinate  functionaries.  The  first  of  these  officers 
was  Juan  de  Fonseca,  archdeacon  of  Seville,  an  active, 
ambitious  prelate,  subsequently  raised  to  high  episco- 
pal preferment,  whose  shrewdness  and  capacity  for 
business  enabled  him  to  retain  the  control  of  the  In- 
dian department  during  the  whole  of  the  present  reign. 
An  office  for  the  transaction  of  business  was  instituted 
at  Seville,  and  a  custom-house  placed  under  its  direc- 
tion at  Cadiz.  This  was  the  origin  of  the  important 
establishment  of  the  Casa  de  la  Contratacion  de  las 
Jndias,  or  India  House.'* 

'S  Herrera,  Indias  occidentales,  dec.  i,  lib.  2,  cap.  3. — Benzoni,  Novi 
Orbis  Hist.,  lib,  i.  cap.  8. — Gomara,  Hist,  de  las  Indias,  cap.  17. — Zu- 
fiiga,  Annales  de  Sevilla,  p.  413. — Fernando  Colon,  Hist,  del  Almirante, 
ubi  supra. — He  was  permitted  to  quarter  the  royal  arms  with  his  own, 
which  consisted  of  a  group  of  golden  islands  amid  azure  billows.  To 
t  ^ese  were  afterwards  added  five  anchors,  with  the  celebrated  motto, 
wtll  known  as  being  carved  on  his  sepulchre.  (See  Part  H.  chap.  18.) 
He  received  besides,  soon  after  his  return,  the  substantial  gratuity  ol 
a  thousand  doblas  of  gold,  from  the  royal  treasury,  and  the  premium 
of  10,000  maravedis,  promised  to  the  person  who  first  descried  land. 
See  Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Viages,  Col.  diplom.,  nos.  20,  32,  38. 

«*  Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Viages,  torn.  ii.  Col.  diplom.,  no.  45. — 
Mufioz,  Hist,  del  Nuevo-Mundo,  lib.  4,  sec.  21. 


SECOND    VOYAGE. 


167 


The  commercial  regulations  adopted  exhibit  a  nar- 
row policy  in  some  of  their  features,  for  which  a  justi- 
fication may  be  found  in  the  spirit  of  the  age,  and  in 
the  practice  of  the  Portuguese  particularly,  but  which 
entered  still  more  largely  into  the  colonial  legislation 
of  Spain  under  later  princes.  The  new  territories, 
far  from  being  permitted  free  intercourse  with  foreign 
nations,  were  opened  only  under  strict  limitations  to 
Spanish  subjects,  and  were  reserved,  as  forming,  in 
some  sort,  part  of  the  exclusive  revenue  of  the  crown. 
All  persons  of  whatever  description  were  interdicted, 
under  the  severest  penalties,  from  trading  with  or  even 
visiting  the  Indies  without  license  from  the  constituted 
authorities.  It  was  impossible  to  evade  this,  as  a  mi- 
nute specification  of  the  ships,  cargoes,  crews,  with  the 
property  appertaining  to  each  individual,  was  required 
to  be  taken  at  the  office  in  Cadiz,  and  a  corresponding 
registration  in  a  similar  office  established  at  Hispa- 
niola.  A  more  sagacious  spirit  was  manifested  in  the 
ample  provision  made  of  whatever  could  contribute  to 
the  support  or  permanent  prosperity  of  the  infant  col- 
ony. Grain,  plants,  the  seeds  of  numerous  vegetable 
products,  which  in  the  genial  climate  o'  die  Indies 
might  be  made  valuable  articles  for  domestic  con- 
sumption or  export,  were  liberally  furnished.  Com- 
modities of  every  description  for  the  supply  of  the  fleet 
were  exempted  from  duty.  The  owners  of  all  vessels 
throughout  the  ports  of  Andalusia  were  required,  by  an 
ordinance  somewhat  arbitrary,  to  hold  them  in  readi- 
ness for  the  expedition.  Still  further  authority  was 
given  to  impress  both  officers  and  men,  if  necessary, 
into  the  service.      Artisans  of  every  sort,   provided 


i68 


RETURN  OF  COLUMBUS. 


lip:  I 


with  the  implements  of  their  various  crafts,  including 
a  great  number  of  miners  for  exploring  the  subterra- 
neous treasures  of  the  new  regions,  were  enrolled  in 
the  expedition ;  in  order  to  defray  the  heavy  charges 
of  which,  the  government,  in  addition  to  the  regular 
resources,  had  recourse  to  a  loan,  and  to  the  seques- 
trated property  of  the  exiled  Jews.'' 

Amid  their  own  temporal  concerns,  the  Spanish 
sovereigns  did  not  forget  the  spiritual  interests  of  their 
new  subjects.  The  Indians  who  accom;^anied  Colum- 
bus to  Barcelona  had  been  all  of  them  baptized,  being 
offered  up,  in  the  language  of  a  Castilian  writer,  as  the 
first-fruits  of  the  gentiles.  King  Ferdinand  and  his 
son.  Prince  John,  stood  as  sponsors  to  two  of  them, 
who  were  permitted  to  take  their  names.  One  of  the 
Indians  remained  attached  to  the  prince's  establish- 
ment ;  the  residue  were  sent  to  Seville,  whence,  after 
suitable  religious  instruction,  they  were  to  be  returned 
as  missionaries  for  the  propagation  of  the  faith  among 
their  own  countrymen.  Twelve  Spanish  ecclesiastics 
were  also  destined  to  this  service ;  among  whom  was 
the  celebrated  Las  Casas,"'  so  conspicuous  afterwards  for 
his  benevolent  exertions  in  behalf  of  the  unfortunate 
natives.  The  most  explicit  directions  were  given  to 
the  admiral  to  use  every  effort  for  the  illumination  of 
the  poor  heathen,  which  was  set  forth  as  the  primary 

*7  Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Viages,  Col.  diplom.,  nos.  33,  35,  45. — 
Herrera,  Indias  occidentales,  dec.  i,  lib.  s,  cap.  4. — Mufioz,  Hist,  del 
Nuevo-Mundo,  lib.  4,  sec.  21. 


•  [This  is  a  mistake,  which  the  author  has  corrected  in  the  History 
of  the  Conquest  of  Mexico.  Las  Casas,  who  was  at  this  time  a  student, 
did  not  embark  for  the  New  World  till  some  years  later. — ED.] 


SECOND    VOYAGE. 


169 


object  of  the  expedition.  He  was  particularly  enjoined 
"  to  abstain  from  all  means  of  annoyance,  and  to  treat 
them  well  and  lovingly,  maintaining  a  familiar  inter* 
course  with  them,  rendering  them  all  the  kind  offices 
in  his  power,  distributing  presents  of  the  merchandise 
and  various  commodities  which  their  Highnesses  had 
caused  to  be  embarked  on  board  the  fleet  for  that  pur- 
pose ;  and  finally,  to  chastise,  in  the  most  exemplary 
manner,  all  who  should  offer  the  natives  the  slightest 
molestation."  Such  were  the  instructions  emphatic- 
ally urged  on  Columbus  for  the  regulation  of  his  in- 
tercourse with  the  savages ;  and  their  indulgent  tenor 
sufficiently  attests  the  benevolent  and  rational  views  of 
Isabella  in  religious  matters,  when  not  warped  by  any 
foreign  influence.** 

Towards  the  last  of  May,  Columbus  quitted  Barce- 
lona for  the  purpose  of  superintending  and  expediting 
the  preparations  for  departure  on  his  second  voyage. 
He  was  accompanied  to  the  gates  of  the  city  by  all 
the  nobility  and  cavaliers  of  the  court.  Orders  were 
issued  to  the  different  towns  to  provide  him  and  his  suite 

«■  See  the  original  instructions,  apud  Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Viages, 
Col.  diplom.,  no.  45. — MuAoz,  Hist,  del  Nuevo-Mundo,  lib.  4,  sec.  22. 
— Zufiiga,  Annales  de  Sevilla,  p.  413. — L.  Marineo  eagerly  claims  the 
conversion  of  the  natives  as  the  prime  object  of  the  expedition  with 
the  sovereigns,  far  outweighing  all  temporal  considerations.  The 
passage  is  worth  quoting,  if  only  to  show  what  egregious  blunders  a 
contemporary  may  make  in  the  relation  of  events  passing,  as  it  were, 
under  his  own  eyes.  "  The  Catholic  sovereigns  having  subjugated 
the  Canaries,  and  established  Christian  worship  there,  sent  Peter 
Colon,  with  thirty-Jive  ships,  called  caravels,  and  a  great  number  of 
men,  to  other  much  larger  islands  abounding  in  mines  of  gold,  not 
so  much,  however,  for  the  sake  of  the  gold,  as  for  the  salvation  of  the 
poor  heathen  natives."     Cosas  memorables,  fol.  161. 

U 


170 


RETURN  OF  COLUMBUS, 


with  lodgings  free  of  expense.  His  former  commission 
was  not  only  confirmed  in  its  full  extent,  but  consider- 
ably enlarged.  For  the  sake  of  despatch,  he  was  au- 
thorized to  nominate  to  all  offices,  without  application 
to  government ;  and  ordinances  and  letters  patent, 
bearing  the  royal  seal,  were  to  be  issued  by  him,  sub- 
scribed by  himself  or  his  deputy.  He  was  intrusted, 
in  fine,  with  such  unlimited  jurisdiction  as  showed 
that,  however  tardy  the  sovereigns  may  have  been  in 
granting  him  their  confidence,  they  were  not  disposed 
to  stint  the  measure  of  it  when  his  deserts  were  once 
established..'' 

Soon  after  Columbus's  return  to  Spain,  Ferdinand 
and  Isabella  applied  to  the  court  of  Rome  to  confirm 
them  in  the  possession  of  their  recent  discoveries  and 

*»  See  copies  of  the  original  documents,  apud  Navarrete,  Coleccion 
de  Viages,  torn,  ii.,  Col.  diplom.,  nos.  39, 41,43,  43. — Considering  tlie 
importance  of  Columbus's  discoveries,  and  the  distinguished  reception 
given  to  him  at  Barcelona,  one  might  have  expected  to  find  some  notice 
of  him  in  the  records  of  the  city.  An  intelligent  friend  of  mine,  Mr. 
George  Sumner,  on  a  visit  to  that  capital,  examined  these  records,  as 
well  as  the  archives  of  the  crown  of  Aragon,  in  the  hope  of  meeting 
with  some  such  account,  but  in  vain.  The  dietaria,  or  "  day-book," 
of  Barcelona  records  the  entrance  of  the  Catholic  sovereigns  and  the 
heir  apparent  into  the  city,  on  the  14th  of  November,  1492,  in  the 
following  terms :  "  The  king,  the  queen,  and  the  prince  entered  to-day 
the  city,  and  took  up  their  abode  in  the  palace  of  the  bishop  of  Urgil, 
in  the  Calle  Ancha."  Then  follows  a  description  of  the  shows  and 
rejoicings  which  took  place  on  the  occasion.  After  this  come  two 
other  entries :  "  1493,  February  4.  The  king,  the  queen,  and  the  prince 
went  to  Montserrat."  "  February  14.  The  king,  the  queen,  and  the 
prince  returned  to  Barcelona."  But  not  a  word  is  given  to  the  dis- 
coverer of  a  world!  And  we  can  only  conjecture  that  the  haughty 
Catalan  felt  no  desire  to  communicate  an  event  which  reflected  no 
glory  on  him,  and  the  advantages  of  which  were  jealously  reserved 
for  his  Castilian  rivals. 


SECOND    VOYAGE. 


171 


invest  them  with  similar  extent  of  jurisdiction  with  that 
formerly  conferred  on  the  kings  of  Portugal.  It  was 
an  opinion,  as  ancient  perhaps  as  the  crusades,  that  the 
pope,  as  vicar  of  Christ,  had  competent  authority  to 
dispose  of  all  countries  inhabited  by  heathen  nations, 
in  favor  of  Christian  potentates.  Although  Ferdinand 
and  Isabella  do  not  seem  to  have  been  fully  satisfied 
of  this  right,  yet  they  were  willing  to  acquiesce  in  its 
assumption  in  the  present  instance,  from  the  conviction 
that  the  papal  sanction  would  most  effectually  exclude 
the  pretensions  of  all  others,  and  especially  their  Por- 
tuguese rivals.  In  their  application  to  the  Holy  See 
they  were  careful  to  represent  their  own  discoveries  as 
in  no  way  interfering  with  the  rights  formerly  conceded 
by  it  to  their  neighbors.  They  enlarged  on  their  ser- 
vices in  the  propagation  of  the  faith,  which  they 
affirmed  to  be  a  principal  motive  of  their  present 
operations.  They  intimated,  finally,  that,  although 
many  competent  persons  deemed  their  application  to 
the  court  of  Rome  for  a  title  to  territories  already  in 
their  possession  to  be  unnecessary,  yet,  as  pious  princes, 
and  dutiful  children  of  the  church,  they  were  unwilling 
to  proceed  further  without  the  sanction  of  him  to  whose 
keeping  its  highest  interests  were  intrusted.** 

The  pontifical  throne  was  at  that  time  filled  by  Alex- 
ander the  Sixth;  a  man  who,  although  degraded  by 
unrestrained  indulgence  of  the  most  sordid  appetites, 
was  endowed  by  nature  with  singular  acuteness  as  well 
as  energy  of  character.  He  lent  a  willing  ear  to  the 
application  of  the  Spanish  government,  and  made  no 

M  Herrera,  Indias  occidentales,  dec.  z.  lib.  a,  cap.  4. — Mufioz,  Hist, 
del  Nuevo-Mundo,  lib.  4,  sec.  18. 


li 


\ 


l\ 


■I 


172 


RETURN  OF  COLUMBUS, 


hesitation  in  granting  what  cost  him  nothing,  while  it 
recognized  the  assumption  of  powers  which  had  already 
begun  to  totter  in  the  opinion  of  mankind. 

On  the  3d  of  May,  1493,  he  published  a  bull,  in 
which,  taking  into  consideration  the  eminent  services 
of  the  Spanish  monarchs  in  the  cause  of  the  church, 
especially  in  the  subversion  of  the  Mahometan  empire 
in  Spain,  and  willing  to  afford  still  wider  scope  for  the 
prosecution  of  their  pious  labors,  he,  "out  of  his  pure 
liberality,  infallible  knowledge,  and  plenitude  of  apos- 
tolic power,"  confirmed  them  in  the  possession  of  all 
lands  discovered,  or  hereafter  to  be  discovered,  by  them 
in  the  western  ocean,  comprehending  the  same  exten- 
sive rights  of  jurisdiction  with  those  formerly  conceded 
to  the  kings  of  Portugal. 

This  bull  he  supported  by  another,  dated  on  the  fol- 
lowing day,  in  which  the  pope,  in  order  to  obviate  any 
misunderstanding  with  the  Portuguese,  and  acting,  no 
doubt,  on  the  suggestion  of  the  Spanish  sovereigns,  de- 
fined with  greater  precision  the  intention  of  his  original 
grant  to  the  latter,  by  bestowing  on  them  all  such  lands 
as  they  should  discover  to  the  west  and  south  of  an 
imaginary  line,  to  be  drawn  from  pole  to  pole,  at  the 
distance  of  one  hundred  leagues  to  the  west  of  the 
Azores  and  Cape  de  Verd  Islands."  It  seems  to  have 
escaped  his  Holiness  that  the  Spaniards,  by  pursuing  a 
western  route,  might  in  time  reach  the  eastern  limits 

"  A  point  south  of  the  meridian  is  something  new  in  geometry ;  yet 
so  says  the  bull  of  his  Holiness:  "  Omnes  insulas  et  terras  firmas  in- 
ventas  et  inveniendas,  detectas  et  detegendas,  versus  occidentem  et 
meridiem,  fabrlcando  et  constituendo  unam  lineam  a  Polo  Arctico, 
scilicet  septentrione,  ad  Polum  Antarcticum,  scilicet  meridiem." 


SECOND    VOYAGE. 


173 


of  countries  previously  granted  to  the  Portuguese.  At 
least  this  would  appear  from  the  import  of  a  third 
bull,  issued  September  25th  of  the  same  year,  which 
invested  the  sovereigns  with  plenary  authority  over  all 
countries  discovered  by  them,  whether  in  the  East,  or 
within  the  boundaries  of  India,  all  previous  conces- 
sions to  the  contrary  notwithstanding.  With  the  title 
derived  from  actual  possession  thus  fortified  by  th3 
highest  ecclesiastical  sanction,  the  Spaniards  might 
have  promised  themselves  an  uninterrupted  career  of 
discovery,  but  for  the  jealousy  of  their  rivals  the  Por- 
tuguese." 

The  court  of  Lisbon  viewed  with  secret  disquietude 
the  increasing  maritime  enterprise  of  its  neighbors. 
While  the  Portuguese  were  timidly  creeping  along  the 
barren  shores  of  Africa,  the  Spaniards  had  boldly 
launched  into  the  deep,  and  rescued  unknown  realms 
from  its  embraces,  which  teemed  in  their  fancies  with 
treasures  of  inestimable  wealth.  Their  mortification 
was  greatly  enhanced  by  the  reflection  that  all  this 
might  have  been  achieved  for  themselves,  had  they  but 
known  how  to  profit  by  the  proposals  of  Columbus.'' 
From  the  first  moment  in  which  the  success  of  the  ad- 
miral's enterprise  was  established,  John  the  Second,  a 
politic  and  ambitious  prince,  had  sought  some  pretence 


»»  See  the  original  papal  grants,  transcribed  by  Navarrete,  Coleccion 
de  Viages,  torn,  ii.,  Col.  diplom.,  nos.  17,  i8.  Appendice  al  Col.  diplom., 
no.  II. 

»3  Padre  Abarca  considers  "  that  the  discovery  of  a  new  world,  first 
offered  to  the  kings  of  Portugal  and  England,  was  reserved  by  Heaven 
for  Spain,  hemg/orted,  in  a  manner,  on  Ferdinand,  in  recompense  for 
the  subjugation  of  the  Moors  and  the  expulsion  of  the  Jews"  I  Reyes 
de  Aragon,  fol.  310,  311. 


174 


RETURN  OF  COLUMBUS. 


to  check  the  career  of  discovery,  or  at  least  to  share  in 
the  spoils  of  it."* 

In  his  interview  with  Columbus,  at  Lisbon,  he  sug- 
gested that  the  discoveries  of  the  Spaniards  might  in- 
terfere with  the  rights  secured  to  the  Portuguese  by 
repeated  papal  sanctions  since  the  beginning  of  the 
present  century,  and  guaranteed  by  the  treaty  with 
Spain  in  1479.  Columbus,  without  entering  into  the 
discussion,  contented  himself  with  declaring  that  he 
had  been  instructed  by  his  own  government  to  steer 
clear  of  all  Portuguese  settlements  on  the  African  coast, 
and  that  his  course  indeed  had  led  him  in  an  entirely 
different  direction.  Although  John  professed  himself 
satisfied  with  the  explanation,  he  soon  after  despatched 
an  ambassador  to  Barcelona,  who,  after  dwelling  on 
some  irrelevant  topics,  touched  as  it  were  incidentally 
on  the  real  object  of  his  mission,  the  late  voyage  of  dis- 
covery. He  congratulated  the  Spanish  sovereigns  on  its 
success,  expatiated  on  the  civilities  shown  by  the  court 
of  Lisbon  to  Columbus  on  his  late  arrival  there,  and 
acknowledged  the  satisfaction  felt  by  his  master  at  the 
orders  given  to  the  admiral  to  hold  a  western  course  from 
the  Canaries,  expressing  a  hope  that  the  same  course 
would  be  pursued  in  future,  without  interfering  with 
the  rights  of  Portugal  by  deviation  to  the  south.  This 
was  the  first  occasion  on  which  the  existence  of  such 
claims  had  been  intimated  by  the  Portuguese. 

In  the  mean  while,  Ferdinand  and  Isabella  received 
intelligence  that  King  John  was  equipping  a  consider- 
able armament  in  order  to  anticipate  or  defeat  their 
discoveries  in  the  west.     They  instantly  sent  one  of 

•«  La  Cl&de,  Hist,  de  Portugal,  torn.  iv.  pp.  53-58. 


SECOND    VOYAGE. 


175 


their  household,  Don  Lope  de  Herrera,  as  ambassador 
to  Lisbon,  with  instructions  to  make  their  acknowl- 
edgments to  the  king  for  his  hospitable  reception  of 
Columbus,  accompanied  with  a  request  that  he  would 
prohibit  his  subjects  from  interference  with  the  dis- 
coveries of  the  Spaniards  in  the  west,  in  the  same 
manner  as  these  latter  had  been  excluded  from  the 
Portuguese  possessions  in  Africa.  The  ambassador  was 
furnished  with  orders  of  a  different  import,  provided  he 
should  find  the  reports  correct  respecting  the  equip- 
ment and  probable  destination  of  a  Portuguese  armada. 
Instead  of  a  conciliatory  deportment,  he  was  in  that 
case  to  assume  a  tone  of  remonstrance,  and  to  demand 
a  full  explanation  from  King  John  of  his  designs.  The 
cautious  prince,  who  had  received,  through  his  secret 
agents  in  Castile,  intelligence  of  these  latter  instruc- 
tions, managed  matters  so  discreetly  as  to  give  no 
occasion  for  their  exercise.  He  abandoned,  or  at  least 
postponed,  his  meditated  expedition,  in  the  hope  of 
adjusting  the  dispute  by  negotiation,  in  which  he  ex- 
celled. In  order  to  quiet  the  apprehensions  of  the 
Spanish  court,  he  engaged  to  fit  out  no  fleet  from  his 
dominions  within  sixty  days ;  at  the  same  time  he  sent 
a  fresh  mission  to  Barcelona,  with  directions  to  propose 
an  amicable  adjustment  of  the  conflicting  claims  of  the 
two  nations,  by  making  the  parallel  of  the  Canaries  a 
line  of  partition  between  them  ;  the  right  of  discovery 
to  the  north  being  reserved  to  the  Spaniards,  and  that 
to  the  south  to  the  Portuguese. "* 

"S  Faria  y  Sousa,  Europa  Portuguesa,  torn.  ii.  p,  463. — Herrera,  In- 
dias  occidentales,  loc.  cit. — Mufioz,  Hist,  del  Nuevo-Mundo,  lib.  4,  sec 
37,  38. — Mariana,  Hist,  de  Espafla,  torn.  ii.  pp.  606,  607. — La  Cleue, 
Hist,  de  Portugal,  torn.  iv.  pp.  53-58. 


i\ 


176 


RETURN  OF  COLUMBUS. 


11  '! 


While  this  game  of  diplomacy  was  going  on,  the  Cas- 
tilian  court  availed  itself  of  the  interval  afforded  by  its 
rival,  to  expedite  preparations  for  the  second  voyage 
of  discovery;  which,  through  the  personal  activity  of 
the  admiral,  and  the  facilities  everywhere  afforded  him, 
were  fully  completed  before  the  close  of  September. 
Instead  of  the  reluctance,  and  indeed  avowed  disgust, 
which  had  been  manifested  by  all  classes  to  his  former 
voyage,  the  only  embarrassment  now  arose  from  the 
difficulty  of  selection  among  the  multitude  of  com- 
petitors who  pressed  to  be  enrolled  in  the  present 
expedition.  The  reports  and  sanguine  speculations  of 
the  first  adventurers  had  inflamed  the  cupidity  of  many, 
which  was  still  further  heightened  by  the  exhibition 
of  the  rich  and  curious  products  which  Columbus  had 
brought  back  with  him,  and  by  the  popular  belief  that 
the  new  discoveries  formed  part  of  that  gorgeous  East 

"  whose  caverns  teem 
With  diamond  flaming,  and  with  seeds  of  gold," 

and  which  tradition  and  romance  had  alike  invested 
with  the  supernatural  splendors  of  enchantment.  Many 
others  were  stimulated  by  the  wild  love  of  adventure 
which  had  been  kindled  in  the  long  Moorish  war,  but 
which  now,  excluded  from  that  career,  sought  other 
objects  in  the  vast,  untravelled  regions  of  the  New 
World.  The  complement  of  the  fleet  was  originally 
fixed  at  twelve  hundred  souls,  a  number  eventually 
swelled  through  importunity  or  various  pretences  of 
the  applicants  to  fifteen  hundred.  Among  these  were 
many  who  enlisted  without  compensation,  including 
several  persons  of  rank,  hidalgos,  and  members  of  the 
royal  household.     The  whole  squadron  amounted  to 


SECOND    VOYAGE. 


^11 


seventeen  vessels,  three  of  them  of  one  hundred  tons' 
burden  each.  With  this  gallant  navy,  Columbus, 
dropping  down  the  Guadalquivir,  took  his  departure 
from  the  bay  of  Cadiz  on  the  25th  of  September,  1493; 
presenting  a  striking  contrast  to  the  melancholy  plight 
in  which,  but  the  year  previous,  he  had  sallied  forth 
like  some  forlorn  knight-errant  on  a  desperate  and 
chimerical  enterprise."* 

No  sooner  had  the  fleet  weighed  anchor  than  Ferdi- 
nand and  Isabella  despatched  an  embassy  in  solemn 
state  to  advise  the  king  of  Portugal  of  it.  This  em- 
bassy was  composed  of  two  persons  of  distinguished 
rank,  Don  Pedro  de  Ayala  and  Don  Garci  Lopez  de 
Carbajal.  Agreeably  to  their  instructions,  they  repre- 
sented to  the  Portuguese  monarch  the  inadmissibility 
of  his  propositions  respecting  the  boundary-line  of 
navigation ;  they  argued  that  the  grants  of  the  Holy 
See,  and  the  treaty  with  Spain  in  1479,  ^^^  reference 
merely  to  the  actual  possessions  of  Portugal,  and  the 
right  of  discovery  by  an  easter*-  route  along  the  coasts 
of  Africa  to  the  Indies;  that  these  rights  had  been  in- 
variably respected  by  Spain ;  that  the  late  voyage  of 
Columbus  struck  into  a  directly  opposite  track;  and 
that  the  several  bulls  of  Pope  Alexander  the  Sixth, 
prescribing  the  line  of  partition,  not  from  east  to  west, 
but  from  the  north  to  the  south  pole,  were  intended  to 
secure  to  the  Spaniards  the  exclusive  right  of  discovery 
in.  the  western  ocean.  The  ambassadors  concluded 
with  offering,  in  the  name  of  their  sovereigns,  to  refer 

*  Zuiiiga,  Anna'--  de  Sevilla,  p.  413. — Fernando  Colon,  Hist,  del 
Almirante,  cap.  44. — Bernaldez,  Reyes  Cat61icos,  MS.,  cap.  118. — 
Peter  Martyr,  De  Rebus  Oceanicis,  dec.  i,  lib.  i. — Benzoni,  Novi  Orbis 
Historia,  lib.  i,  cap.  9. — Gomara,  Hist,  de  las  Indias,  cap.  so. 
Vol.  II.— 12  H* 


I 


178 


HETUHN  OF  COLUMBUS. 


the  whole  matter  in  dispute  to  the  arbitration  of  the 
court  of  Rome,  or  of  any  common  umpire. 

King  John  was  deeply  chagrined  at  learning  the 
departure  of  the  Spanish  expedition.  He  saw  that  his 
rivals  had  been  acting,  while  he  had  been  amused  with 
negotiation.  He  at  first  threw  out  hints  of  an  imme- 
diate rupture,  and  endeavored,  it  is  said,  to  intimidate 
the  Castilian  ambassadors  by  bringing  them  accident- 
ally, as  it  were,  in  presence  of  a  splendid  array  of  cav- 
alry, mounted  and  ready  for  immediate  service.  He 
vented  his  spleen  on  the  embassy,  by  declaring  that  **  it 
was  a  mere  abortion,  having  neither  head  nor  feet ;"  al- 
luding to  the  personal  infirmity  of  Ayala,  who  was  lame, 
and  to  the  light,  frivolous  character  of  the  other  envoy.'' 

These  symptoms  of  discontent  were  duly  notified  to 
the  Spanish  government,  who  commanded  the  super- 
intendent, Fonseca,  to  keep  a  vigilant  eye  on  the 
movements  of  the  Portuguese,  and,  in  case  any  hostile 
armament  should  quit  their  ports,  to  be  in  readiness 
to  act  against  it  with  one  double  its  force.  King  John, 
however,  was  too  shrewd  a  prince  to  be  drawn  into  so 
impolitic  a  measure  as  war  with  a  powerful  adversary, 
quite  as  likely  to  baffle  him  in  the  field  as  in  the  coun- 
cil. Neither  did  he  relish  the  suggestion  of  deciding 
the  dispute  by  arbitration,  since  he  well  knew  that  his 
claim  rested  on  too  unsound  a  basis  to  authorize  the 
expectation  of  a  favorable  award  from  any  impartial 
umpire.  He  had  already  failed  in  an  application  for 
redress  to  the  court  of  Rome,  which  answered  him 
by  reference  to  its  bulls,  recently  published.     In  this 

»7  La  elide,  Hist,  de  Portugal,  torn.  iv.  pp.  53-58. — Mufioz,  Hist, 
del  Nuevo-MundQ,  lib.  4,  sec.  27,  28. 


SECOND    VOYAGE, 


X79 


emergency,  he  came  to  the  resolution  at  last,  which 
should  have  been  at  first  adopted,  of  deciding  the 
matter  by  a  fair  and  open  conference.  It  was  not  until 
the  following  year,  however,  that  his  discontent  so  far 
subsided  as  to  allow  his  acquiescence  in  this  measure. 

At  length,  commissioners  named  by  the  two  crowns 
convened  at  Tordesillas,  and  on  the  7th  of  June,  1494, 
subscribed  articles  of  agreement,  which  were  ratified  in 
the  course  of  the  same  year  by  the  respective  powers. 
In  this  treaty  the  Spaniards  were  secured  in  the  exclu- 
sive right  of  navigation  and  discovery  in  the  western 
ocean.  At  the  urgent  remonstrance  of  the  Portuguese, 
however,  who  complained  that  the  papal  line  of  demar- 
cation cooped  up  their  enterprises  within  too  narrow 
limits,  they  consented  that,  instead  of  one  hundred, 
it  should  be  removed  three  hundred  and  seventy  leagues 
west  of  the  Cape  de  Verd  islands,  beyond  which  all 
discoveries  should  appertain  to  the  Spanish  nation.  It 
was  agreed  that  one  or  two  caravels  should  be  provided 
by  each  nation,  to  meet  at  the  Grand  Canary  and  pro- 
ceed due  west  the  appointed  distance,  with  a  number 
of  scientific  men  on  board,  for  the  purpose  of  accurately 
determining  the  longitude ;  and,  if  any  lands  should  fall 
under  the  meridian,  the  direction  of  the  line  should  be 
ascertained  by  the  erection  of  beacons  at  suitable  dis- 
tances. The  proposed  meeting  never  took  place.  But 
the  removal  of  the  partitiqn-line  was  followed  by  impor- 
tant consequences  to  the  Portuguese,  who  derived  from 
it  their  pretensions  to  the  noble  empire  of  Brazil.* 

"8  Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Viages,  Doc.  diplom.,  no.  75. — Faria  y 
Sousa,  Europa  Portuguesa,  torn.  ii.  p.  463. — Herrera,  Tndias  occiden- 
tales,  dec.  i,  lib.  2,  cap.  8,  10. — Mariana,  Hist.de  Espafla,  torn.  ii.  pp. 


I 


tSo 


RETURN  OF  COLUMBUS. 


Thus  the  singular  misunderstanding,  which  menaced 
an  open  rupture  at  one  time,  was  happily  adjusted. 
Fortunately,  the  accomplishment  of  the  passage  round 
the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  which  occurred  soon  after- 
wards, led  the  Portuguese  in  an  opposite  direction  to 
their  Spanish  rivals,  their  Brazilian  possessions  having 
too  little  attractions,  at  first,  to  turn  them  from  the 
splendid  path  of  discovery  thrown  open  in  the  East. 
It  was  not  many  years,  however,  before  the  two  nations, 
by  pursuing  opposite  routes  of  circumnavigation,  were 
brought  into  collision  on  the  other  side  of  the  globe ; 
a  circumstance  never  contemplated,  apparently,  by  the 
treaty  of  Tordesillas.  Their  mutual  pretensions  were 
founded,  however,  on  the  provisions  of  that  treaty, 
which,  as  the  reader  is  aware,  was  itself  only  supple- 
mentary to  the  original  bull  of  demarcation  of  Alexander 
the  Sixth."*  Thus  this  bold  stretch  of  papal  authority, 
so  often  ridiculed  as  chimerical  and  absurd,  was  in  a 
measure  justified  by  the  event,  since  it  did,  in  fact, 
determine  the  principles  on  which  the  vast  extent  of 
unappropriated  empire  in  the  eastern  and  western 
hemispheres  was  ultimately  divided  between  two  petty 
states  of  Europe. 

606,  607. — La  Cl&de,  Hist,  de  Portugal,  torn.  iv.  pp.  60-62. — Zurita, 
Anales,  torn.  v.  fol.  31. 

a9  The  contested  territory  was  the  Molucca  islands,  which  each  party 
claimed  for  itself,  by  virtue  of  the  trgaty  of  Tordesillas.  After  more 
than  one  congress,  in  which  all  the  cosmographical  science  of  the  day 
was  put  in  requisition,  the  aHair  was  terminated  h  I'amiabU  by  the 
Spanish  government's  relinquishing  its  pretensions,  in  consideration  of 
350,000  ducats  paid  by  the  court  of  Lisbon.  See  La  Clfede,  Hist,  de 
Portugal,  tom.  iv.  pp.  309,  401,  402,  480. — Mariana,  Hist,  de  Espaiia, 
torn.  ii.  pp.  607,  875. — Salazar  de  Mendoza,  Monarquia,  tom.  ii.  pp. 
S05,  206. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

CASTILIAN    LITERATURE. — CULTIVATION   OF   THE   COURT. 
CLASSICAL   LEARNING. — SCIENCE.- 

Early  Education  of  Ferdinand, — Of  Isabella. — Her  Library. — Early 
Promise  of  Prince  John. — Scholarship  of  the  Nobles. — Accom- 
plished Women. — Classical  Learning. — Universities. — Printing  intro- 
duced.— Encouraged  by  the  Queen. — Actual  Progress  of  Science. 

We  have  now  arrived  at  the  period  when  the  history 
of  Spain  becomes  incorporated  with  that  of  the  other 
states  of  Europe.  Before  embarking  on  the  wide  sea 
of  European  politics,  however,  and  bidding  adieu,  for 
a  season,  to  the  shores  of  Spain,  it  will  be  necessary,  in 
order  to  complete  the  view  of  the  internal  administra- 
tion of  Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  to  show  its  operation 
on  the  intellectual  culture  of  the  nation.  This,  as  it 
constitutes,  when  taken  in  its  broadest  sense,  a  prin- 
cipal end  of  all  government,  should  never  be  altogether 
divorced  from  any  history.  It  is  particularly  deserving 
of  note  in  the  present  reign,  which  stimulated  the 
active  development  of  the  national  energies  in  every 
department  of  science,  and  which  forms  a  leading  epoch 
in  the  ornamental  literature  of  the  country.  The  present 
and  the  following  chapter  will  embrace  the  mental,  pro- 
gress of  the  kingdom,  not  merely  down  to  the  period 
at  which  we  have  arrived,  but  through  the  whole  of 
Isabella's  reign,  in  order  to  exhibit  as  far  as  possible  its 
entire  results,  at  a  single  glance,  to  the  eye  of  the  reader. 

(i8i) 


i8a 


CASTILIAN  LITERATURE. 


We  have  beheld,  in  a  preceding  chapter,  the  auspi- 
cious literary  promise  alTorded  by  the  reign  of  Isa- 
bella's father,  John  the  Second  of  Castile.  Under 
the  anarchical  sway  of  his  son,  Henry  the  Fourth, 
the  court,  as  we  have  seen,  was  abandoned  to  un- 
bounded license,  and  the  whole  nation  sunk  into  a 
mental  torpor  from  which  it  was  roused  only  by  the 
tumults  of  civil  war.  In  this  deplorable  state  of 
things,  the  few  blossoms  of  literature  which  had 
begun  to  open  under  the  benign  influence  of  the 
preceding  reign  were  speedily  trampled  under  foot, 
and  every  vestige  of  civilization  seemed  in  a  fair  way 
to  be  effaced  from  the  land. 

The  first  years  of  Ferdinand  and  Isabella's  govern- 
ment were  too  much  clouded  by  civil  dissensions  to 
afford  a  much  more  cheering  prospect.  Ferdinand's 
early  education,  moreover,  had  been  greatly  neglected. 
Before  the  age  of  ten,  he  was  called  to  take  part  in  the 
Catalan  wars.  His  boyhood  was  spent  among  soldiers, 
in  camps  instead  of  schools,  and  the  wisdom  which  he 
so  eminently  displayed  in  later  life  was  drawn  far  more 
from  his  own  resources  than  from  books.' 

Isabella  was  reared  under  more  favorable  auspices ; 
at  least  more  favorable  to  mental  culture.  She  was 
allowed  to  pass  her  youth  in  retirement,  and  indeed 
oblivion,  as  far  as  the  world  was  concerned,  under  her 
mother's  care,  at  Arevalo.  In  this  modest  seclusion, 
free  from  the  engrossing  vanities  and  vexations  of  court 
life,  she  had  full  leisure  to  indulge  the  habits  of  study 
and  reflection  to  which  her  temper  naturally  disposed 
her.      She  was  acquainted  with  several  modern  lan- 

*  L.  Marineo,  Cosas  memorables,  fol.  153. 


CLASSICAL  LEARNING  —SCIENCE, 


183 


guages,'*'  and  both  wrote  and  discoursed  in  her  own  with 
great  precision  and  elegance.  No  great  expense  or 
solicitude,  however,  appears  to  have  been  lavished  on 
her  education.  She  was  uninstructed  in  the  Latin, 
which  in  that  day  was  of  greater  importance  than  at 
present;  since  it  was  not  only  the  common  medium 
of  communication  between  learned  men,  and  the  lan- 
guage in  which  the  most  familiar  treatises  were  often 
composed,  but  was  frequently  used  by  well-educated 
foreigners  at  court,  and  especially  employed  in  diplo- 
matic intercourse  and  negotiation.' 

Isabella  resolved  to  repair  the  defects  of  education, 
by  devoting  herself  to  the  acquisition  of  the  Latin 
tongue,  so  soon  as  the  distracting  wars  with  Portugal 
which  attended  her  accession  were  terminated.  We 
have  a  letter  from  Pulgar,  addressed  to  the  queen  soon 
after  that  event,  in  which  he  inquires  concerning  her 
progress,  intimating  his  surprise  that  she  can  find  time 
for  study  amidst  her  multitude  of  engrossing  occu- 
pations, and  expressing  his  confidence  that  she  will 
acquire  the  Latin  with  the  same  facility  with  which 
she  had  already  mastered  other  languages.  The  result 
justified  his  prediction;  for  "in  less  than  a  year," 
observes  another  contemporary,  "  her  admirable  genius 
enabled  her  to  obtain  a  good  knowledge  of  the  Latin 

>  L.  Marineo,  Cosas  memorables,  fol.  154,  i8a. 


*  [Bergenroth  says  that  Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  though  they  wrote 
Spanish  well,  "  seem  to  have  been  unable  to  understand  any  other 
language."  (Letters  and  Despatches,  vol.  i.,  introd.,  p.  xxxv.)  No 
evidence  is  adduced  to  support  this  conclusion — c  conjecture  ;  nor  is 
any  notice  taken  of  the  evidence  by  which,  in  Isabella's  case,  it  is 
clearly  refuted. — ED.] 


sr 


1 84 


CASTIUAN  LITERATURE. 


language,  so  that  she  could  understand  without  much 
difficulty  whatever  was  written  or  spoken  in  it."' 

Isabella  inherited  the  taste  of  her  father,  John  the 
Second,  for  collecting  books.  She  endowed  the  con- 
vent of  San  Juan  de  los  Reyes  at  Toledo,  at  the 
time  of  its  foundation,  1477,  with  a  library  consisting 
principally  of  manuscripts.^  The  Archives  of  Siman- 
cas  contain  catalogues  of  part  of  two  separate  collec- 
tions belonging  to  her,  whose  broken  remains  have 

3  Carro  de  las  Duflas,  lib.  a,  cap.  6a  et  seq.,apud  Mem.  de  la  Acad, 
de  Hist.,  torn.  vi.  Ilust.  ai.— Pulgar,  Letras  (Amstelodami,  1670),  let. 
II. — L.  Marineo,  Cosas  memohibles,  fol.  i8a. — It  is  sufficient  evidence 
of  her  familiarity  with  the  Latin,  that  the  letters  addressed  to  her  by 
her  confessor  seem  to  have  been  written  in  that  language  and  the  Cas- 
tilian  indifferently,  exhibiting  occasionally  a  curious  patchwork  in  the 
alternate  use  of  each  in  the  same  epistle.  See  Correspondencia  episto'^'r, 
apud  Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de  Hist.,  torn.  vi.  Ilust.  13. 

4  Previous  to  the  introduction  of  printing,  collections  of  books  were 
necessarily  very  small  and  thinly  scattered,  owing  to  the  extreme  cost 
of  manuscripts.  The  learned  Saez  has  collected  some  curious  particu- 
lars relative  to  this  matter.  The  most  copious  library  which  he  could 
find  any  account  of  in  the  middle  of  the  fifteenth  century  was  owned 
by  the  counts  of  Benavente.  and  contained  not  more  than  one  hundred 
and  twenty  volumes.  Many  of  these  were  duplicates ;  of  Livy  alone 
there  were  eight  copies.  The  cathedral  churches  in  Spain  rented  their 
books  every  year  by  auction  to  the  highest  bidders,  whence  they  de- 
rived a  considerable  revenue.  It  would  appear  from  a  copy  of  Gratian's 
Canons,  preserved  in  the  Celestine  monastery  in  Paris,  that  the  copyist 
#as  engaged  twenty-one  months  in  transcribing  that  manuscript.  At 
this  rate,  the  production  of  four  thousand  copies  by  one  hand  would 
require  nearly  eight  thousand  years,  a  work  now  easily  performed  in 
less  than  four  months.  Such  was  the  tardiness  in  multiplying  copies 
before  the  invention  of  printing.  Two  thousand  volumes  may  be  pro- 
cured now  at  a  price  which  in  those  days  would  hardly  have  sufficed 
to  purchase  fifty.  See  Tratado  de  Monedas  de  Enrique  III.,  apud 
Moratin,  Obras,  ed.  de  la  Acad.  (Madrid,  1830),  tom.  i.  pp.  91,  9a. 
But  does  not  Moratin  draw  his  conclusions  from  extreme  cases? 


CLASSICAL   LEARt^rNG.—SCIENCE, 


»85 


contributed  to  swell  the  mngnificent  library  of  the 
Escurial.  Most  of  them  are  in  maniiHrript ;  the  richly- 
colored  and  highly-decorated  binding  of  thest  volumes 
(an  art  which  the  Spaniards  derived  from  the  Arabs) 
shows  how  highly  they  were  prized,  and  the  worn  and 
battered  condition  of  some  of  them  proves  that  they 
were  not  kept  merely  for  show.* 

The  queen  manifested  the  most  earnest  solicitude  for 
the  instruction  of  her  own  children.  Her  daughters 
were  endowed  by  nature  with  amiable  dispositions, 
that  seconded  her  maternal  efforts.  The  most  com- 
petent masters,  native  and  foreign,  especially  from 
Italy,  then  so  active  in  the  revival  of  ancient  learning, 
were  employed  in  their  tuition.  This  was  particularly 
intrusted  to  two  brothers,  Antonio  and  Alessandro 
Geraldino,  natives  of  that  country.  Both  were  con- 
spicuous for  their  abilities  and  classical  erudition, 
and  the  latter,  who  survived  his  brother  Antonio,  was 

s  Navagiero,  Viaggio  fatto  In  Spagna  et  in  Francia  (Vinegia,  1563), 
fol.  33. — Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de  Hist.,  torn.  vi.  Ilust.  17. — The  larger 
collection  comprised  about  two  hundred  and  one  articles,  or  distinct 
works.  Of  these,  about  a  third  is  taken  up  with  theology,  compre- 
hending Bibles,  psalters,  missals,  lives  of  saints,  and  works  of  the  Fathers ; 
one-fifth,  civil  law  and  the  municipal  code  of  Spain ;  one-fourth,  ancient 
classics,  modem  literature,  and  romances  of  chivalry;  one-tenth,  his- 
tory ;  the  residue  is  devoted  to  ethics,  medicine,  grammar,  astrology, 
etc.  The  only  Italian  author,  besides  Leonardo  Bruno  d'Arezzo,  is 
Boccaccio.  The  worksof  the  latter  writer  consisted  of  the  "  Fiammetta," 
the  treatises  "  De  Casibus  Illustrium  Virorum,"  and  "  De  Claris  Mu- 
lieribus,"  and  probably  the  "  Decameron ;"  the  first  in  the  Italian, 
and  the  three  last  translated  into  the  Spanish.  It  is  singular  that 
neither  of  Boccaccio's  great  contemporaries,  Dante  and  Petrarch, 
the  former  of  whom  had  been  translated  by  Villena,  and  imitated  by 
Juan  de  Mena,  half  a  century  before,  should  have  found  a  pluce  in 
the  collection. 


\\ 


1 86 


CASTILIAN  LITERATURE. 


subsequently  raised  to  high  ecclesiastical  preferments.* 
Under  these  masters,  the  infantas  made  attainments 
rarely  permitted  to  the  sex,  and  acquired  such  famil- 
iarity with  the  Latin  tongue  especially  as  excited  lively 
admiration  among  those  over  whom  they  were  called  to 
preside  in  riper  years.' 

A  still  deeper  anxiety  was  shown  in  the  education  of 
her  only  son.  Prince  John,  heir  of  the  united  Spanish 

<  Antonio,  the  eldest,  died  in  1488.  Part  of  his  Latin  poetical  works, 
entitled  "  Sacred  Bucolics,"  was  printed  in  1505,  at  Salamanca.  The 
younger  brother,  Alessandro,  after  bearing  arms  in  the  Portuguese  war, 
was  subsequently  employed  in  the  instruction  of  the  infantas,  finally 
embraced  the  ecclesiastical  state,  and  died  bishop  of  St.  Domingo,  in 
1525.  Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de  Hist.,  tom.  vi.  Ilust.  16. — Tiraboschi,  Let- 
teratura  Italiana,  tom.  vi.  part,  a,  p.  285, 

7  The  learned  Valencian,  Luis  Vives,  in  his  treatise  "  De  Christian^, 
Femina,"  remarks,  "  iEtas  nostra  quatuor  illas  Isabellas  reginse  filias, 
quas  paullo  ante  memoravi,  eruditas  vidit.  Non  sine  laudibus  et 
aumiratione  refertur  mihi  passim  in  hac  terr&  Joannam,  Philippi  conju- 
gem,  Caroli  hujus  matrem,  ex  tempore  latinis  orationibus,  quae  de  more 
apud  novos  principes  oppidatim  habentur,  latine  respondisse.  Idem  de 
regin&  sua,  Joannae  sorore,  Britanni  praedicant ;  idem  omnes  de  duabus 
aliis,  quae  in  Lusitania  fato  concessere."  (De  Christiana  Femind,  cap. 
4,  apud  Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de  Hist.,  tom.  vi.  Ilust.  16.) — It  appears,  how- 
ever, that  Isabella  was  not  inattentive  to  the  more  humble  accomplish- 
ments, in  the  education  of  her  daughters.  "  Regina,"  says  the  same 
author,  "  nere,  suere,  acu  pingere  quatuor  filias  suas  doctas  esse  voluit." 
Another  contemporary,  the  author  of  the  Carro  de  las  Dofias  (lib.  a, 
cap.  62,  apud  Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de  Hist.,  Ilust.  21),  says,  "  She  edu- 
cated her  son  and  daughters,  giving  them  masters  of  life  and  letters, 
and  surrounding  them  with  such  persons  as  tended  to  make  them  ves- 
sels of  election,  and  kings  in  heaven."  Erasmus  notices  the  literary 
attainments  of  the  youngest  daughter  of  the  sovereigns,  the  unfortunate 
Catharine  of  Aragon ,  with  unqualified  admiration.  In  one  of  his  letters 
he  styles  her  "egregie  doctam  ;"  and  in  another  he  remarks,  "  Regina 
non  tantum  in  sexus  miraculum  literata  est ;  nee  minus  pietate  suspi- 
cienda,  quam  eruditione."  Epistolae  (L/ondini,  1643),  lib.  19,  epist.  31 ; 
lib.  2,  epist,  24. 


, 


CLASSICAL  LEARNING.— SCIENCE. 


187 


monarchies.  Every  precaution  was  taken  to  train  him 
up  in  a  manner  that  might  tend  to  the  formation  of  a 
character  suited  to  his  exalted  station.  He  was  placed 
in  a  class  consisting  of  ten  youths,  selected  from  the 
sons  of  the  principal  nobility.  Five  of  them  were  of 
his  own  age,  and  five  of  riper  years,  and  they  were  all 
brought  to  reside  with  him  in  the  palace.  By  this 
means  it  was  hoped  to  combine  the  advantages  of  public 
wit!  those  of  private  education ;  which  last,  from  its 
solitary  character,  necessarily  excludes  the  subject  of  it 
from  the  wholesome  influence  exerted  by  bringing  the 
powers  into  daily  collision  with  antagonists  of  a  similar 
age.' 

A  mimic  council  was  also  formed  on  the  model  of  a 
council  of  state,  composed  of  suitable  persons  of  more 
advanced  standing,  whose  province  it  was  to  deliberate 
on,  and  to  discuss,  topics  connected  with  government 
and  public  policy.  Over  this  body  the  prince  presided, 
and  here  he  was  initiated  into  a  practical  acquaintance 
with  the  important  duties  which  were  to  devolve  on  him 
at  a  future  period  of  life.  The  pages  in  attendance  on 
his  person  were  also  selected  with  great  care  from  the 
cavaliers  and  young  nobility  of  the  court,  many  of 
whom  afterwards  filled  with  credit  the  most  consider- 
able posts  in  the  state.  The  severer  discipline  of  the 
prince  was  relieved  by  attention  to  more  light  and 
elegant  accomplishments.  He  devoted  many  of  his 
leisure  hours  to  music,  for  which  he  had  a  fine  natural 
taste,  and  in  which  he  attained  sufficient  proficiency 
to  perform  with  skill  on  a  variety  of  instruments.     In 

*  Oviedo,  Quincuagenas,  MS.,  dial,  de  Deza. — Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de 
Hist.,  torn.  vi.  Ilust.  14. 


i88 


CASTILIAN  LITERATURE. 


\  m 


short,  his  education  was  happily  designed  to  produce 
that  combination  of  mental  and  moral  excellence  which 
should  fit  him  for  reigning  over  his  subjects  with  benev- 
olence and  wisdom.  How  well  the  scheme  succeeded 
is  abundantly  attested  by  the  commendations  of  con- 
temporary writers,  both  at  home  and  abroad,  who 
enlarge  on  his  fondness  for  letters  and  for  the  society 
of  learned  men,  on  his  various  attainments,  and  more 
especially  his  Latin  scholarship,  and  above  all  on  his 
disposition,  so  amiable  as  to  give  promise  of  the  high- 
est excellence  in  maturer  life, — a  promise,  alas  I  most 
unfortunately  for  his  own  nation,  destined  never  to  be 
realized.' 

Next  to  her  family,  there  was  no  object  which  the 
queen  had  so  much  at  heart  as  the  improvement  of  the 
young  nobility.  During  the  troubled  reign  of  her  pre- 
decessor they  had  abandoned  themselves  to  frivolous 
pleasure,  or  to  a  sullen  apathy  from  which  nothing  was 
potent  enough  to  arouse  them  but  the  voice  of  war." 
She  was  obliged  to  relinquish  her  plans  of  amelioration 


B 


9  Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de  Hist.,  torn.  vi.  Ilust.  14. — ^Juan  de  la  Encina, 
in  the  dedication  to  the  prince  of  his  translation  of  Virgil's  Bucolics, 
pays  the  following  compliment  to  the  enlightened  and  liberal  taste  of 
Prince  John :  "  Favoresceis  tanto  la  sciencia  andando  acompafiado  de 
tantos  e  tan  doctisimos  varones,  que  no  menos  dejareis  perdurabl,;  me- 
moria  de  haber  alargado  e  estendido  los  limites  e  t^rminos  de  la  sciencia 
que  los  del  imperio."  The  extraordinary  promise  of  this  young  prince 
made  his  name  known  in  distant  parts  of  Europe,  and  his  untimely 
death,  which  occurred  in  the  twentieth  year  of  his  age,  was  com- 
memorated by  an  epitaph  of  the  learned  Greek  exile,  Constantine 
Lascaris. 

10  "  Aficionados  A  la  guerra,"  says  Oviedo,  speaking  of  some  young 
nobles  of  his  time,  " por  su  Espanolay  natural  inchnacion."  Quincua- 
genas,  MS.,  bat.  i,  quinc.  i,  dial.  36. 


CLASSICAL   LEARNING.— SCIENCE. 


189 


during  the  all-engrossing  struggle  with  Granada,  when 
it  would  have  been  esteemed  a  reproach  for  a  Spanish 
knight  to  have  exchanged  the  post  of  danger  in  the 
field  for  the  effeminate  pursuit  of  letters.  But  no 
sooner  was  the  war  brought  to  a  close  than  Isabella 
resumed  her  purpose.  She  requested  the  learned  Peter 
Martyr,  who  had  come  into  Spain  with  the  count  of 
Tendilla  a  few  years  previous,  to  repair  to  the  court 
and  open  a  school  there  for  the  instruction  of  the 
young  nobility."  In  an  epistle  addressed  by  Martyr  to 
Cardinal  Mendoza,  dated  at  Granada,  April,  1492,  he 
alludes  to  the  promise  of  a  liberal  recompense  from  the 
queen  if  he  would  assist  in  reclaiming  the  young  cava- 
liers of  the  court  from  the  idle  and  unprofitable  pursuits 
in  which,  to  her  great  mortification,  they  consumed 
their  hours.  The  prejudices  to  be  encountered  seem  to 
have  filled  him  with  natural  distrust  of  his  success ;  for 
he  remarks,  **  Like  their  ancestors,  they  hold  the  pur- 
suit of  letters  in  light  estimation,  considering  them 
an  obstacle  to  success  in  the  profession  of  arms,  which 
alone  they  esteem  worthy  of  honor."  He,  however, 
expresses  his  confidence  that  the  generous  nature  of  the 
Spaniards  will  make  it  easy  to  infuse  into  them  a  more 
liberal  taste;  and  in  a  subsequent  letter  he  enlarges 
on  the  "  good  effects  likely  to  result  from  the  literary 
ambition  exhibited  by  the  heir  apparent,  on  whom 
the  eyes  of  the  nation  were  naturally  turned."" 

"  For  some  account  of  this  eminent  Italian  scholar,  see  the  postscript 
to  Part  I.  chap.  14,  of  this  History. 

"  Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  epist.  102,  103. — Lucio  M arineo,  in  a 
discourse  addressed  to  Charles  V.,  thus  notices  the  queen's  solicitude 
for  the  instniction  of  her  young  nobility:  "  Isabella  praesertim  Regina 
magnanima,  virtutum  omnium  maxima  cultrix.    Quae  quidem  multis 


190 


CASTILIAN  LITERATURE. 


Martyr,  in  obedience  to  the  royal  summons,  instantly 
repaired  to  court,  and  in  the  month  of  September  fol- 
lowing we  have  a  letter  dated  from  Saragossa,  in  which 
he  thus  speaks  of  his  success :  "  My  house,  all  day  long, 
swarms  with  noble  youths,  who,  reclaimed  from  ignoble 
pursuits  to  those  of  letters,  are  now  convinced  that 
these,  io  far  from  being  a  hindrance,  are  rather  a  help 
in  the  profession  of  arms.  I  earnestly  inculcate  on 
them  that  consummate  excellence  in  any  department, 
whether  of  war  or  peace,  is  unattainable  without  science. 
It  has  pleased  our  royal  mistress,  the  pattern  of  every 
exalted  virtue,  that  her  own  near  kinsman,  the  duke 
of  Guimaraens,  as  well  as  the  young  duke  of  Villaher- 
mosa,  the  king's  nephew,  should  remain  under  my 
roof  during  the  whole  day ;  an  example  which  has  been 
imitated  by  the  principal  cavaliers  of  the  court,  who, 
after  attending  my  lectures  in  company  with  their 
private  tutors,  retire  at  evening  to  review  them  with 
these  latter  in  their  own  quarters.  "'^ 

Another  Italian  scholar,  often  cited  as  authority  in 
the  preceding  portion  of  this  work,  Lucio  Marineo 
Siculo,  co-operated  with  Martyr  in  the  introduction  of 
a  more  liberal  scholarship  among  the  Castilian  nobles. 
He  was  born  at  Bedino,  in  Sicily,  and,  after  com- 
pleting his  studies  at  Ronie  under  the  celebrated  Pom- 
ponio  Leto,  opened  a  school  in  his  native  island,  where 

et  magnis  ocoupata  negotiis,  ut  aliis  exetnplum  praeberet,  a  primis 
grammaticae  rudimentis  studere  coepit,  et  omnes  suae  domfis  adoles- 
centes  utriusqiie  sexus  nobilium  liberos,  prseceptoribus  liberaliter  et 
honorifice  conductis  erudiendos  commendabat."  Mem.  de  la  Acad. 
de  Hist.,  torn.  vL  Apend.  16. — See  also  Oviedo,  Quincuagenas,  MS., 
bat.  I,  quinc.  i,  dial.  36. 

«3  Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  epist.  115. 


CLASSICAL   LEARNING.— SCIENCE, 


191 


he  continued  to  teach  for  five  years.  He  was  then 
induced  to  visit  Spain,  in  i486,  with  the  admiral  Heu- 
riquez,  and  soon  took  his  place  among  the  professors 
of  Salamanca,  where  he  filled  the  chairs  of  poetry  and 
grammar  with  great  applause  for  twelve  years.  He  was 
subsequently  transferred  to  the  court,  which  he  helped 
to  illumine  by  his  exposition  of  the  ancient  classics, 
particularly  the  Latin.**  Under  the  auspices  of  these 
and  other  eminent  scholars,  both  native  and  foreign, 
the  young  nobility  of  Castile  shook  off  the  indolence 
in  which  they  had  so  long  rusted,  and  applied  with 
generous  ardor  to  the  cultivation  of  science ;  so  that,  in 
the  language  of  a  contemporary,  "  while  it  was  a  most 
rare  occurrence  to  meet  with  a  person  of  illustrious 

H  A  particular  account  of  Marineo's  writings  may  be  found  in  Nic. 
Antonio.  (Bibliotheca  Nova,  torn,  ii.,  Apend.  p.  369.)  The  most  im- 
portant of  these  is  his  work  "  De  Rebus  Hispaniae  Memorabilibus," 
often  cited,  in  the  Castilian,  in  this  History.  It  is  a  rich  repository  of 
details  respecting  the  geography,  statistics,  and  manners  of  the  Pen- 
insula, with  a  copious  historical  notice  of  events  in  the  reign  of  Ferdi- 
nand and  Isabella.  The  author's  insatiable  curiosity,  during  a  long 
residence  in  the  country,  enabled  him  to  collect  many  facts  of  a  kind 
that  do  not  fall  within  the  ordinary  compass  of  history ;  while  his 
extensive  learning,  and  his  familiarity  with  foreign  models,  peculiarly 
qualified  him  for  estimating  the  institutions  he  describes.  It  must  be 
confessed  he  is  sufficiently  partial  to  the  land  of  his  adoption.  The 
edition  referred  to  in  this  work  is  in  black  letter,  printed  before,  or 
soon  after,  the  author's  death  (the  date  of  which  is  uncertain),  in  1539, 
at  Alcald  de  Henares,  by  Juan  Brocar,  one  of  a  family  long  celebrated 
in  ths  'nn&als  of  Castilian  printing.  Marineo's  prologue  concludes  \.  ith 
the  following  noble  tribute  to  letters :  "  Porque  todos  los  otros  bienes 
son  subjectos  a  la  fortuna  y  mudables  y  en  poco  tiempo  mudan  muchos 
duefios  passando  de  unos  sefiores  en  otros,  mas  los  dones  de  letras  y 
hystorias  que  se  ofrescen  para  perpetuidad  de  memoria  y  fama  son  im- 
mortales  y  prorogan  y  guardan  para  siempre  la  memoria  assi  de  los  que 
los  reciben,  como  de  los  que  los  ofrescen." 


I 


Ii 


tpa 


CAST/LIAN  LITERATURE, 


birth,  before  the  present  reign,  who  had  even  studied 
Latin  in  his  youth,  there  were  now  to  be  seen  numbers 
every  day  who  sought  to  shed  the  lustre  of  letters  over 
the  martial  glory  inherited  from  their  ancestors.'"' 

The  extent  of  this  generous  emulation  may  be  gath- 
ered from  the  large  correspondence  both  of  Martyr  and 
Marineo  with  their  disciples,  including  the  most  con- 
siderable persons  of  the  Castilian  court ;  it  may  be  still 
further  inferred  from  the  numerous  dedications  to  these 
persons  of  contemporary  publications,  attesting  their 
munificent  patronage  of  literary  enterprise  ;'*  and  still 
more  unequivocally  from  the  zeal  with  which  many  of 
the  highest  rank  entered  on  such  severe  literary  labor 
as  few,  from  the  mere  love  of  letters,  are  found  willing 
to  encounter.  Don  Gutierre  de  Toledo,  son  of  the 
duke  of  Alva,  and  a  cousin  of  the  king,  taught  in  the 
university  of  Salamanca.  At  the  same  place,  Don 
Pedro  Fernandez  de  Velasco,  son  of  the  count  of  Haro, 
who  subsequently  succeeded  his  father  in  the  hereditary 

»s  Sepulveda,  Democrites,  apud  Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de  Hist.,  torn.  vi. 
Ilust.  i6. — Signorelli,  Coltura  nelle  Sicilie,  torn.  iv.  p.  318. — Tiraboschi, 
Letteratura  Italiana,  torn.  vii.  part.  3,  lib  3,  cap.  4. — Comp.  Lampillas, 
Saggio  stoVico-apologetico  de  la  Letteratura  Spagnuola  (Genova,  1778), 
torn.  ii.  dis.  2,  sec.  5. — The  patriotic  abate  is  greatly  scandalized  by 
the  degree  of  influence  which  Tiraboschi  and  other  Italian  critics  as- 
cribe to  their  own  language  over  the  Castilian,  especially  at  this  period. 
The  seven  volumes  in  which  he  has  discharged  his  bile  on  the  heads 
of  the  offenders  afford  valuable  materials  for  the  historian  of  Spanish 
literature.  Tiraboschi  must  be  admitted  to  have  the  better  of  his  an- 
tagonist in  temper,  if  not  in  argument. 

»*  Among  these  we  find  copious  translations  from  the  ancient  classics, 
as  Caesar,  Appian,  Plutarch,  Plautus,  Sallust,  ^Esop,  Justin,  Boethius, 
Apuleius,  Herodian,  affording  strong  evidence  of  the  activity  of  the 
Castilian  scholars  in  this  department.  Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de  H!  ^t,,  to:a. 
vi.  pp.  406,  407. — Mendez,  Typographia  Espanola,  pp.  133,  139. 


CLASSICAL   LEARNING.— SCIENCE. 


193 


dignity  of  grand  constable  of  Castile,  read  lectures  on 
Pliny  and  Ovid.  Don  Alfonso  de  Manrique,  son  of 
the  count  of  Parades,  was  professor  of  Greek  in  the 
university  of  Alcala.  All  ages  seemed  to  catch  the 
generous  enthusiasm ;  and  the  marquis  of  Denia,  al- 
though turned  of  sixty,  made  amends  for  the  sins  of 
his  youth,  by  learning  the  elements  of  the  Latin 
tongue  at  this  late  period.  In  short,  as  Giovio  re- 
marks in  his  eulogium  on  Lebrija,  *'  No  Spaniard  was 
accounted  noble  who  held  science  in  indifference." 
From  a  very  early  period,  a  courtly  stamp  was  im- 
pressed on  the  poetic  literature  of  Spain.  A  similar 
character  was  now  imparted  to  its  erudition  ;  and  men 
of  the  most  illustrious  birth  seemed  eager  to  lead  the 
way  in  the  difficult  career  of  science,  which  was  thrown 
open  to  the  nation.'' 

In  this  brilliant  exhibition  those  of  the  other  sex 
must  not  be  omitted,  who  contributed  by  their  intel- 
lectual endowments  to  the  general  illumination  of  the 
period.  Among  them,  the  writers  of  that  day  lavish 
their  panegyrics  on  the  marchioness  of  Monteagudo, 
and  Doiia  Maria  Pacheco,  of  the  ancient  house  of  Men- 
doza,  sisters  of  the  historian  Don  Diego  Hurtado,'*and 

•7  Salazar  de  Mendoza,  Dignidades,  cap.  at. — Lucio  Marineo  Siculo, 
in  his  discourse  above  alluded  to,  in  which  he  exhibits  the  condition  of 
letters  under  the  reign  of  Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  enumerates  the  names 
of  the  nobility  most  conspicuous  for  their  scholarship.  This  valuable 
document  was  to  be  found  only  in  the  edition  of  Marineo's  work,  "  De 
Rebus  Hispaniae  Memorabilibus,"  printed  at  Alcald  in  1630,  whence  it 
has  been  transferred  by  Clemencin  to  the  sixth  volume  of  the  Memoirs 
of  the  Royal  Academy  of  History. 

»8  His  work  "  Guerra  de  Granada"  was  first  published  at  Madrid,  in 
1610,  and  "  may  be  compared,"  says  Nic.  Antonio,  in  a  judgment  which 
has  been  ratified  by  the  general  consent  of  his  countrymen,  "  with  the 
Vol.  II.— 13  1 


)  1 


194 


CASTILIAN  LITERATURE. 


daughters  of  the  accomplished  count  of  Tendilla,*'  who, 
while  ambassador  at  Rome,  induced  Martyr  to  visit 
Spain,  and  who  was  grandson  of  the  famous  marquis 
of  Santillana,  and  nephew  of  the  grand  cardinal." 
This  illustrious  family,  rendered  yet  more  illustrious 
by  its  merits  than  its  birth,  is  worthy  of  specifica- 
tion, as  affording  altogether  the  most  remarkable  com- 
bination of  literary  talent  in  the  enlightened  court  of 
Castile.  The  queen's  instructor  in  the  Latin  language 
was  a  lady  named  Dofia  Beatriz  de  Galindo,  called 
from  her  peculiar  attainments  la  Latina.  Another  lady, 
Dofia  Lucia  de  Medrano,  publicly  lectured  on  the  Latin 
classics  in  the  university  of  Salamanca ;  and  another, 
Dofia  Francisca  de  Lebrija,  daughter  of  the  historian 
of  that. name,  filled  the  chair  of  rhetoric  with  applause 
at  AlcaU.  But  our  limits  will  not  allow  a  further  enu- 
meration of  names,  which  should  never  be  permitted 
to  sink  into  oblivion,  were  it  only  for  the  rare  scholar- 
ship, peculiarly  rare  in  the  female  sex,  which  they  dis- 
played in  an  age  comparatively  unenlightened."  Female 

compositions  of  Sallust  or  any  other  ancient  historian."  His  poetry 
and  his  celebrated  picaresco  novel,  "  Lazarillo  de  Tormes,"  have  made 
an  epoch  in  the  ornamental  literature  of  Spain. 

>9  Oviedo  has  devoted  one  of  his  dialogues  to  this  nobleman,  equally 
distinguished  by  his  successes  in  arms,  letters,  and  love ;  the  lost  of 
which,  according  to  that  writer,  he  had  not  entirely  resigned  at  the  age 
of  seventy. — Quincuagenas,  MS.,  bat.  i,  quinc.  i,  dial.  28. 

»  For  an  account  of  Santillana,  see  the  first  chapter  of  this  History. 
The  cardinal,  in  early  life,  is  said  to  have  translated  for  his  father  the 
iEneid,  the  Odyssey,  Ovid,  Valerius  Maximus,  and  Sallust.  (Mem.  de 
la  Acad,  de  Hist.,  tom.  vi.  Ilust.  16.)  This  herculean  feat  would  put 
modern  schoolboys  to  shame ;  and  we  may  suppose  that  partial  ver- 
sions only  of  these  authors  are  intended. 

"  Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de  Hist.,  tom.  vi.  Ilust.  16. — Oviedo,  Quincua- 
genas, MS.,  dial,  dc  Grizio. — Sefior  Clemencin  has  examined  yith  much 


CLASSICAL  LEARNJNG.—SCIENCE, 


195 


le 


education  in  that  day  embraced  a  wider  compass  of 
erudition,  in  reference  to  the  ancient  languages,  than  is 
common  at  present ;  a  circumstance  attributable,  prob- 
ably, to  the  poverty  of  modern  literature  at  that  time, 
and  the  new  and  general  appetite  excited  by  the  revival 
of  classical  learning  in  Italy.  I  am  not  aware,  how- 
ever, that  it  was  usual  for  learned  ladies,  in  any  other 
country  than  Spain,  to  take  part  in  the  public  exercises 
of  the  gymnasium  and  deliver  lectures  from  the  chairs 
of  the  universities.*  This  peculiarity,  which  may  be 
referred  in  part  to  the  influence  of  the  queen,  who  en- 
couraged the  love  of  study  by  her  own  example,  as  well 
as  by  personal  attendance  on  the  academic  examina* 
tions,  may  have  been  also  --.uggested  by  a  similar  usage, 
already  noticed,  among  the  Spanish  Arabs." 

While  the  study  of  the  ancient  tongues  came  thus 
into  fashion  with  persons  of  both  sexes  and  of  the 
highest  rank,  it  was  widely  and  most  thoroughly  culti- 
vated by  professed  scholars.  Men  of  letters,  some  of 
whom  have  been  already  noticed,  were  invited  into 

care  the  intellectual  culture  of  the  nation  under  Isabella,  in  the  sixteenth 
Ilustracion  of  his  work.  He  has  touched  lightly  on  its  poetical  char- 
acter, considering,  no  doubt,  that  this  had  been  sufficiently  developed 
by  other  critics.  His  essay,  however,  is  rich  in  information  in  regard 
to  the  scholarship  and  severer  studies  of  the  period.  The  reader  who 
would  pursue  the  inquiry  still  further  may  find  abundant  materials  in 
Nic.  Antonio,  Bibliotheca  Vetus,  tom.  ii.  lib.  lo,  cap.  13  et  seq. — Idem, 
Bibliotheca  Hispana  Nova  (Matriti,  1783-8),  tom.  i,  ii.,  passim. 
»  See  Part  I.  chap.  8,  of  this  History. 


a- 


*  [The  two  examples  cited  in  the  text  do  not  show  that  the  practice 
was  "  usual"  in  Spain ;  while  at  least  one  earlier  instance  in  another 
country — the  famous  Novella  d*  Andrea,  of  Bologna — will  be  recollected 
by  most  readers. — ED.] 


196 


CASTILIAN  LITERATURE. 


Spain  fro.m  Italy,  the  theatre  at  that  time  on  which, 
from  obvious  local  advantages,  classical  discovery  was 
pursued  with  greatest  ardor  and  success.  To  this  coun- 
try it  was  usual  also  for  Spanish  students  to  repair,  in 
order  to  complete  their  discipline  in  classical  literature, 
especially  the  Greek,  as  first  taught  on  sound  principles 
of  criticism  by  the  learned  exiles  from  Constantinople. 
The  most  remarkable  of  the  Spanish  scholars  who  made 
this  literary  pilgrimage  to  Italy  was  Antonio  de  Lebrija, 
or  Nebrissensis,  as  he  is  more  frequently  called  from 
his  Latin  name."'  After  ten  years  passed  at  Bologna 
and  other  seminaries  of  repute,  with  particular  atten- 
tion to  their  interior  discipline,  he  returned,  in  1473, 
to  his  native  land,  richly  laden  with  the  stores  of  va- 
rious erudition.  He  was  invited  to  fill  the  Latin  chair 
at  Seville,  whence  he  was  successively  transferred  to 
Salamanca  and  AlcaU,  both  of  which  places  he  long 
continued  to  enlighten  by  his  oral  instruction  and  pub- 
lications. The  earliest  of  these  was  hi;!  Introducciones 
LatinaSy  the  third  edition  of  which  was  printed  in  1485, 
being  four  years  only  from  the  date  of  the  first;  a 
remarkable  evidence  of  the  growing  taste  for  classical 
learning.  A  translation  in  the  vernacular  accompanied 
the  last  edition,  arranged,  at  the  queen's  suggestion,  in 
columns  parallel  with  those  of  the  original  text ;  a  form 
which,  since  become  common,  was  then  a  novelty."* 
The  publication  of  his  Castilian  grammar,  *^Gram- 

=3  For  a  notice  of  this  scholar,  see  tlie  postscript  to  Part  I.  chap.  11, 
of  this  History. 

a4  Mendez,  Typographia  EspaHola,  pp.  271,  272. — In  the  second 
edition,  published  in  1482,  the  author  states  that  no  work  of  the  time 
had  a  greater  circulation,  more  than  a  thousand  copies  of  it  having 
been  disposed  of,  at  a  high  price,  in  the  preceding  year.     Ibid.,  p.  237, 


CLASSICAL  LEARNING.— SCIENCE. 


197 


tnatica  Castillanay^  followed  in  1492;  a  treatise  de- 
signed particularly  for  the  instruction  of  the  ladies  of 
the  court.  The  other  productions  of  this  indefatigable 
scholar  embrace  a  large  circle  of  topics,  independently 
of  his  various  treatises  on  philology  and  criticism. 
Some  were  translated  into  French  and  Italian,  and 
their  republication  was  continued  to  the  last  century. 
No  man  of  his  own  or  of  later  times  contributed  more 
essentially  than  Lebrija  to  the  introduction  of  a  pure 
and  healthful  erudition  into  Spain.  It  is  not  too  much 
to  say  that  there  was  scarcely  an  eminent  Spanish  scholar 
in  the  beginning  of  the  sixteenth  century  who  had  not 
formed  himself  on  the  instructions  of  this  master. "* 

Another  name  worthy  of  commemoration  is  that  of 
Arias  Barbosa,  a  learned  Portuguese,  who,  after  passing 
some  years,  like  Lebrija,  in  the  schools  of  Italy,  where 
he  studied  the  ancient  tongues  under  the  guidance  of 
Politiano,  was  induced  to  establish  his  residence  in 
Spain.     In  1489  we  find  him  at  Salamanca,  where  he 

»s  Nic.  Antonio,  Bibliotheca  Nova,  torn.  i.  pp.  132-139. — Lamplllas, 
Letteratura  Spagnuola,  torn.  ii.  dis.  2,  sec.  3. — Didlogo  de  las  Len- 
guas,  apud  Mayans  y  Siscar,  Origenes  (Madrid,  1737),  torn.  ii.  pp.  46, 
47. — Lucio  Marineo  pays  the  following  elegant  compliment  to  this 
learned  Spaniard,  in  his  discourse  before  quoted :  "Amisit  nuper  His- 
pania  maximum  sui  cultorem  in  re  litteraria,  Antonium  Nebrissensem, 
qui  primus  ex  Italia  in  Hispaniam  Musas  adduxit,  quibuscum  barba- 
riem  ex  sua  patria  fugavit,  et  Hispaniam  totam  linguae  Latinae  lecti- 
onibus  illustravit."  "  Meruerat  id,"  says  Gomez  de  Castro  of  Lebrija, 
"et  multo  majora hominis  eruditio,  cui  Hispania  debet,  quicquid  habet 
bonarum  literarum."  The  acute  author  of  the  "  Didlogo  de  las  Len- 
guas,"  while  he  renders  ample  homage  to  Lebrija's  Latin  enidition, 
disputes  his  critical  acquaintance  with  his  own  language,  from  his  being 
a  native  of  Andalusia,  where  the  Castilian  was  not  spoken  with  purity : 
"  Hablaba  y  escrivia  como  en  el  Andalucia  y  no  como  en  la  Castilla." 
p.  92.    See  also  pp.  9,  10,  46,  53. 


.f^mr^frnfrnm 


198 


CASTILIAN  LITERATURE. 


continued  for  twenty,  or,  according  to  some  accounts, 
forty,  years,  teaching  in  the  departments  of  Greek  and 
rhetoric.  At  the  close  of  that  period  he  returned  to 
Portugal,  where  he  superintended  the  education  of 
some  of  the  members  of  the  royal  family,  and  survived 
to  a  good  old  age.  Barbosa  was  esteemed  inferior  to 
Lebrija  in  extent  of  various  erudition,  but  as  having 
surpassed  him  in  an  accurate  knowledge  of  the  Greek, 
and  poetical  criticism.  In  the  former,  indeed,  he 
seems  to  have  obtained  a  greater  repute  than  any  Span- 
ish scholar  of  the  time.  He  composed  some  valuable 
works,  especially  on  ancient  prosody.  The  unwearied 
assiduity  and  complete  success  of  his  academic  labors 
have  secured  to  him  a  high  reputation  among  the 
restorers  of  ancient  learning,  and  especially  that  of 
reviving  a  livelier  relish  for  the  study  of  the  Greek,  by 
conducting  it  on  principles  of  pure  criticism,  in  the 
same  manner  as  Lebrija  did  with  the  Latin."' 

The  scope  of  the  present  work  precludes  the  possibility 
of  a  copious  enumeration  of  the  pioneers  of  ancient 
learning,  to  whom  Spain  owes  so  large  a  debt  of  grati- 
tude.^   The   Castilian  scholars  of  the  close  of  the 

^  Barbosa,  Bibliotheca  Lusitana  (Lisboa  occidental,  1741),  torn.  i. 
pp.  76-78. — Signorelli,  Coltura  nelle  Sicilie,  torn.  iv.  pp.  315-321.— 
Mayans  y  Siscar,  Origenes,  torn.  i.  p.  173. — Lampillas,  Letteratura 
Spagnuola,  torn.  ii.  dis.  a,  sec.  5. — Nic.  Antonio,  Bibliotheca  Nova, 
torn.  i.  pp.  170,  171. 

«7  Among  these  are  particularly  deserving  of  attention  the  brothers 
John  and  Francis  Vergara,  professors  at  Alcald,  the  latter  of  whom  was 
esteemed  one  of  the  most  accomplished  scholars  of  the  age ;  Nuftez  de 
Guzman,  of  the  ancient  house  of  that  name,  professor  for  many  years 
at  Salamanca  and  Alcald,  and  the  author  of  the  Latin  version  in  the 
famous  Polyglot  of  Cardinal  Ximenes ;  he  left  behind  him  numerous 
works,  especially  commentaries  on  the  classics ;  Olivario,  whose  curious 


CLASSICAL   LEARNING.— SCIENCE. 


199 


fifteenth  and  the  beginning  of  the  sixteenth  century 
may  take  rank  with  their  illustrious  contemporaries  of 
Italy.  They  could  not,  indeed,  achieve  such  brilliant 
results  in  the  discovery  of  the  remains  of  antiquity,  for 
such  remains  had  been  long  scattered  and  lost  amid  the 
centuries  of  exile  and  disastrous  warfare  consequent  on 
the  Saracen  invasion.  But  they  were  unwearied  in 
their  illustrations,  both  oral  and  written,  of  the  ancient 
authors;  and  their  numerous  commentaries,  translations, 
dictionaries,  grammars,  and  various  works  of  criticism, 
many  of  which,  though  now  obsolete,  passed  into  re- 
peated editions  in  their  ow;;  day,  bear  ample  testimony 
to  the  generous  zeal  with  which  they  conspired  to  raise 
their  contemporaries  to  a  proper  level  for  contemplating 
the  works  of  the  great  masters  of  antiquity,  and  well 
entitled  them  to  the  high  eulogium  of  Erasmus,  that 
"liberal  studies  were  brought,  in  the  course  of  a  few 
years,  in  Spain  to  so  flourishing  a  condition  as  might 
not  only  excite  the  admiration,  but  serve  as  a  model  to 
the  most  cultivated  nations  of  Europe."* 


erudition  was  abundantly  exhibited  in  his  illustrations  of  Cicero  and 
other  Latin  authors ;  and,  lastly,  Vives,  whose  fame  belongs  rather  to 
Europe  than  his  own  country,  and  who,  when  only  twenty-six  years  old, 
drew  from  Erasmus  the  encomium  that  "  there  was  scarcely  any  one 
of  the  age  whom  he  could  venture  to  compare  with  him  in  philosophy, 
eloquence,  and  liberal  learning."  But  the  most  unequivocal  testimony 
to  the  deep  and  various  scholarship  of  the  period  is  afforded  by  that 
stupendous  literary  work  of  Cardinal  Ximenes,  the  Polyglot  Bible, 
whose  versions  in  the  Greek,  Latin,  and  Oriental  tongues  were  col- 
lated, with  a  single  exception,  by  Spanish  scholars.  Erasmus,  Epistolae, 
lib.  19,  epist.  loi. — Lampillas,  Letteratura  Spagnuola,  tom.  ii.  pp.  38a 
-384,  495,  792-794 ;  tom.  ii.  p.  ao8  et  seq. — Gomez,  De  Rebus  gestis, 
fol.  37. 
■8  Erasmus,  Epistolae,  p.  977. 


:^00 


CASTILIAN  LITERATURE. 


The  Spanish  universities  were  the  theatre  on  which 
this  classical  erudition  was  more  especially  displayed. 
Previous  to  Isabella's  reign,  there  were  but  few  schools 
in  the  kingdom;  not  one,  indeed,  of  any  note,  except 
in  Salamanca ;  and  this  did  not  escape  the  blight  which 
fell  on  every  generous  study.  But  under  the  cheering 
patronage  of  the  present  government  they  were  soon 
filled,  and  widely  multiplied.  Academies  of  repute 
were  to  be  found  in  Seville,  Toledo,  Salamanca,  Gra- 
nada, and  Alcala;  and  learned  teachers  were  drawn  from 
abroad  by  the  most  liberal  emoluments.  At  the  head 
of  these  establishments  stood  "the  illustrious  city  of 
Salamanca,"  as  Marineo  fondly  terms  it,  "mother  of 
all  liberal  arts  and  virtues,  alike  renowned  for  noble 
cavaliers  and  learned  men.""*  Such  was  its  reputation 
that  foreigners  as  well  as  natives  were  attracted  to  its 
schools,  and  at  one  time,  according  to  the  authority  of 
the  same  professor,  seven  thousand  students  were  assem- 
bled within  its  walls.  A  letter  of  Peter  Martyr  to  his 
patron  the  count  of  Tendilla  gives  a  whimsical  picture 
of  the  literary  enthusiasm  of  this  place.  The  throng 
was  so  great  to  hear  his  introductory  lecture  on  one 
of  the  Satires  of  Juvenal  that  every  avenue  to  the  hall 
was  blockaded,  and  the  professor  was  borne  in  on  the 
shoulders  of  the  students.  Professorships  in  every  de- 
partment of  science  then  studied,  as  well  as  of  polite 
letters,  were  established  at  the  university,  the  "new 
Athens,"  as  Martyr  somewhere  styles  it.     Before  the 

9"  La  muy  esclarecida  ciudad  de  Salamanca,  madre  de  las  artes 
liberales,  y  todas  virtudes,  y  ansi  de  cavalleros  como  de  letrados  va- 
rones,  muy  ilustre."  Cosas  memorables,  fol.  ii. — Chacon,  Hist,  de 
la  L'!.iversidad  de  Salamanca,  apud  Semanario  erudito,  torn,  xviii.  pp. 
l-6i. 


ii 


CLASSICAL  LEARNING.— SCIENCE. 


201 


close  of  Isabella's  reign,  however,  its  glories  were 
rivalled,  if  not  eclipsed,  by  those  of  Alcalaj**  which 
combined  higher  advantages  for  ecclesiastical  with  civil 
education,  and  which,  under  the  splendid  patronage 
of  Cardinal  Ximenes,  executed  the  famous  Polyglot 
version  of  the  Scriptures,  the  most  litupendous  literary 
enterprise  of  that  age. 3* 

This  active  cultivation  was  not  confined  to  the  dead 
languages,  but  spread  more  or  less  over  every  depart- 
ment of  knowledge.  Theological  science,  in  particular, 
received  a  large  share  of  attention.  It  had  always  formed 
a  principal  object  of  academic  instruction,  though  suf- 
fered to  languish  under  the  universal  corruption  of  the 
preceding  reign.  It  was  so  common  for  the  clergy  to 
be  ignorant  of  the  most  elementary  knowledge,  that 
the  council  of  Aranda  found  it  necessary  to  pass  an 
ordinance,  the  year  before  Isabella's  accession,  that  no 
person  should  be  admitted  to  orders  who  was  ignorant 
of  Latin.  The  queen  took  the  most  effectual  means 
for  correcting  this  abuse,  by  raising  only  competent 

30  "Academia  Complutensis,"  says  Erasmus  of  this  university,  "non 
aliunde  celebritatem  nominis  auspicata  est  qu^m  a  complectendo  lin- 
guas  ac  bonas  literas.  Cujus  praecipuum  ornamentum  est  egregius  ille 
senex,  plan^que  dignus,  qui  multos  vincat  Nestoras,  Antonius  Nebris- 
sensis."     Epist.  ad  Ludovicum  Vivem,  1521,  Epistolae,  p.  755. 

V-  Cosas  memorables,  ubi  supra. — Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  epist. 
57. — Gomez,  De  Rebus  gestis,  lib.  4. — Cliacon,  Universidad  de  Sala- 
manca, ubi  supra. — It  appears  that  the  practice  of  scraping  with  the 
feet  as  an  expression  of  disapprobation,  familiar  in  our  universities,  is 
of  venerable  antiquity ;  for  Martyr  mentions  that  he  was  saluted  with 
it  before  finishing  his  discourse  by  one  or  two  idle  youths,  dissatisfied 
with  its  length.  The  lecturer,  however,  seems  to  have  given  general 
satisfaction,  for  he  was  escorted  back  in  triumph  to  his  lodgings,  to  use 
his  own  language,  "  like  a  victor  in  the  Olympic  games,"  after  the  con- 
clusion of  the  exercise. 


302 


CASTILIAN  LITERATURE. 


persons  to  ecclesiastical  dignities.  The  highest  stations 
in  the  church  were  reserved  for  those  who  combined 
the  highest  intellectual  endowments  with  unblemished 
piety.  Cardinal  Mendoza,  whose  acute  and  compre- 
hensive mind  entered  with  interest  into  every  scheme 
for  the  promotion  of  science,  was  archbishop  of  Toledo; 
Talavera,  whose  hospitable  mansion  was  itself  an  acad- 
emy for  men  of  letters,  and  whose  princely  revenues 
were  liberally  dispensed  for  their  support,  was  raised 
to  the  see  of  Granada ;  and  Ximenes,  whose  splendid 
literary  projects  will  require  more  particular  notice 
hereafter,  succeeded  Mendoza  in  the  primacy  of  Spain. 
Under  the  protection  of  these  enlightened  patrons, 
theological  studies  were  pursued  with  ardor,  the  Scrip- 
tures copiously  illustrated,  and  sacred  eloquence  cul- 
tivated with  success. 

A  similar  impulse  was  felt  in  the  other  walks  of  science. 
Jurisprudence  assumed  a  new  aspect,  under  the  learned 
labors  of  Montalvo.'*  The  mathematics  formed  a  prin- 
cipal branch  of  education,  and  were  successfully  applied 
to  astronomy  and  geography.  Valuable  treatises  were 
produced  on  medicine,  and  on  the  more  familiar  prac- 
tical arts,  as  husbandry,  for  example. ^^  History,  which 
since  the  time  of  Alfonso  the  Tenth  had  been  held  in 
higher  honor  and  more  widely  cultivated  in  Castile 
than  in  any  other  European  state,  began  to  lay  aside 
the  garb  of  chronicle  and  to  be  studied  on  more  scien- 

3»  For  some  remarks  on  the  labors  of  this  distinguished  jurisconsult, 
see  Part  I.  chap.  6,  and  Part  II.  chap.  26,  of  the  present  work. 

33  The  most  remarkable  of  these  latter  is  Herrera's  treatise  on  Agri- 
culture, which,  since  its  publication  in  Toledo  in  1520,  has  passed 
through  a  variety  of  editions  "at  home  and  translations  abroad.  Nia 
Antonio,  Bibliotheca  Nova,  torn.  i.  p.  50^, 


CLASSICAL   LEARNING.— SCIENCE. 


203 


tific  principles.  Charters  and  diplomas  were  consulted, 
manuscripts  collated,  coins  and  lapidary  inscriptions 
deciphered,  and  collections  made  of  these  materials, 
the  true  basis  of  authentic  history;  and  an  office  of 
public  archives,  like  that  now  existing  at  Simancas,  was 
established  at  Burgos,  and  placed  under  the  care  of 
Alonso  de  Mota,  as  keeper,  with  a  liberal  salary. s* 

Nothing  could  have  been  more  opportune  for  the 
enlightened  purposes  of  Isabella  than  the  introduction 
of  the  art  of  printing  into  Spain  at  the  commencement, 
indeed  in  the  very  first  year,  of  her  reign.  She  saw, 
from  the  first  moment,  all  the  advantages  which  it 
promised  for  diffusing  and  perpetuating  the  discoveries 
of  science.  She  encouraged  its  establishment,  by  large 
privileges  to  those  who  exercised  it,  whether  natives 
or  foreigners,  and  by  causing  many  of  the  works  com- 
posed by  her  subjects  to  be  printed  at  her  own  charge.* 

Among  the  earlier  printers  we  frequently  find  the  names 
of  Germans, — a.  people  who  to  the  original  merits  of  the 
discovery  may  justly  add  that  of  its  propagation  among 
every  nation  of  Europe.  We  meet  with  a  pragmaticay 
or  royal  ordinance,  dated  in  1477,  exempting  a  Ger- 
man, named  Theodoric,  from  taxation,  on  the  ground 
of  being  **  one  of  the  principal  persons  in  the  discovery 
and  practice  of  the  art  of  printing  books,  which  he  had 
brou£;ht  with  him  into  Spain  at  great  risk  and  expense, 

34  This  collection,  with  the  ill  luck  which  has  too  often  befallen  such 
repositories  in  Spain,  was  burnt  in  the  war  of  the  Communities,  in  the 
time  of  Charles  V.  Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de  Hist.,  tom.  vi.  Ilust.  16. — 
Morales,  Obras,  tom.  vii.  p.  18. — Informe  de  Riol,  who  particularly 
notices  the  solicitude  of  Ferdinand  and  Isabella  for  preserving  the 
public  documents. 

35  Mendez,  Typographia  Elspafiola,  p.  51. 


I  i' 


304 


CASTILIAN  LITERATURE. 


with  the  design  of  ennobling  the  libraries  of  the  king- 
dom. "3*  Monopolies  for  printing  and  selling  books 
for  a  limited  period,  answering  to  the  modern  copyright, 
were  granted  to  certain  persons  in  consideration  of 
their  doing  so  at  a  reasonable  rate.''  It  seems  to  have 
been  usual  for  the  printers  to  be  also  the  publishers  and 
venders  of  books.  These  exclusive  privileges,  however, 
do  not  appear  to  have  been  carried  to  a  mischievous 
extent.  Foreign  books,  of  every  description ,  by  a  law 
of  1480,  were  allowed  to  be  imported  into  the  kingdom 
free  of  all  duty  whatever;  an  enlightened  provision, 
which  might  furnish  a  useful  hint  to  legislators  of  the 
nineteenth  century. s* 

The  first  press  appears  to  have  been  erected  at  Valen- 
cia, in  1474;  although  the  glory  of  precedence  is  stoutly 
contested  by  several  places,  and  especially  by  Barce- 
lona.* The  first  work  printed  was  a  collection  of  songs 

3^  Archivo  de  Murcia,  apud  Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de  Hist.,  torn.  vi. 
p.  244. 

37  Mendez,  Typographia  Espafiola,  pp.  52,  332. 

38  Ordenan9as  Reales,  lib.  4,  tit.  4,  ley  22. — The  preamble  of  this 
statute  is  expressed  in  the  following  enlightened  terms :  "  Considerando 
los  Reyes  de  gloriosa  rnemoria  quanto  era  provechoso  y  honroso,  que 
a  estos  sus  reynos  se  truxessen  libros  de  otras  partes  para  que  con  ellos 
se  hiziessen  los  hombres  letrados,  quisieron  y  ordenaron,  que  de  los 

libros  no  se  pagasse  el  alcavala Lo  qual  parece  que  redunda 

en  provecho  universal  de  todos,  y  en  ennoblecimiento  de  nuestros 
Reynos." 

39  Capmany,  Mem.  de  Barcelona,  torn.  i.  part.  2,  lib.  2,  cap.  6. — 
Mendez,  Typographia  Espafiola,  pp.  55,  93. — Bouterwek  intimates 
that  the  art  of  printing  was  first  practised  in  Spain  by  German  printers 
at  Seville,  in  the  beg^intiing  of  tlu  sixteenth  century.  (Geschichte  der 
Poesie  und  Beredsamkeit  (Gottingen,  1801-17),  Band  iii.  S.  98.)— 
He  appears  to  have  been  misled  by  a  solitary  example  quoted  from 
Mayans  y  Siscar.  The  want  of  materials  has  more  than  once  led  this 
eminent  critic  to  build  sweeping  conclusions  on  slender  premises. 


\ 


CLASSICAL  LEARNING.— SCIENCE. 


205 


composed  for  a  poetical  contest  in  honor  of  the  Vi'-^in, 
for  the  most  part  in  the  Limousin  or  Valencian  dia- 
lect.**  In  the  following  year  the  first  ancient  classic, 
being  the  works  of  Sallust,  was  printed;  and  in  1478 
there  appeared  from  the  same  press  a  translation  of  the 
Scriptures  in  the  Limousin,  by  father  Boniface  Ferrer, 
brother  of  the  famous  Dominican,  St.  Vincent  Ferrer.** 
Through  the  liberal  patronage  of  the  government,  the 
art  was  widely  diffused;  and  before  the  end  of  the 
fifteenth  century  presses  were  established  and  in  active 
operation  in  the  principal  cities  of  the  united  kingdom; 
in  Toledo,  Seville,  Ciudad  Real,  Granada,  Valladolid, 
Burgos,  Salamanca,  Zamora,  Saragossa,  Valencia,  Bar- 
celona, Monte  Rey,  Lerida,  Murcia,  Tolosa,  Tarragona, 
Alcala  de  Henares,  and  Madrid. 

It  is  painful  to  notice  amidst  the  judicious  provisions 
for  the  encouragement  of  science,  one  so  entirely  repug- 
nant to  their  spirit  as  the  establishment  of  the  censor- 
ship. By  an  ordinance  dated  at  Toledo,  July  8th,  1502, 
it  was  decreed  that,  "  as  many  of  the  books  sold  in  the 
kingdom  were  defective,  or  false,  or  apocryphal,  or  preg- 
nant with  vain  and  superstitious  novelties,  it  was  there- 
fore ordered  that  no  book  should  hereafter  be  printed 
without  special  license  from  the  king,  or  some  person 
regularly  commissioned  by  him  for  the  purpose."  The 
names  of  the  commissioners  then  follow,  consisting 
mostly  of  ecclesiastics,  archbishops  and  bishops,  with 
authority   respectively  over   their    several   dioceses.^ 

v>  The  title  of  the  book  is  "  Certamen  poetich  en  lohor  de  la  Con- 
cecio,"  Valencia,  1474,  4to.  The  name  of  the  printer  is  wanting.  Men- 
clez,  Typographia  Espaiiola,  p.  56. 

4x  Mendez,  Typographia  Espanola,  pp.  61-63. 

4»  Ibid.,  pp.  52,  53. — PragmAticas  del  Reyno,  fol.  138,  139. 


!    ! 


206 


CASTILIAN  LITERATURE. 


This  authority  was  devolved  in  later  times,  under 
Charles  the  Fifth  and  his  successors,  on  the  Council 
of  the  Supreme,  over  which  the  inquisitor-general  pre- 
sided ex  officio.  The  immediate  agents  employed  in 
the  examination  were  also  drawn  from  the  Inquisition, 
who  exercised  this  important  trust,  as  is  well  known,  in 
a  manner  most  fatal  to  the  interests  of  letters  and 
humanity.  Thus  a  provision  destined  in  its  origin  for 
the  advancement  of  science,  by  purifying  it  from  the 
crudities  and  corruptions  which  naturally  infect  it  in  a 
primitive  age,  contributed  more  effectually  to  its  dis- 
couragement than  any  other  which  could  have  been 
devised,  by  interdicting  the  freedom  of  expression  so 
indispensable  to  freedom  of  inquiry.*' 

While  endeavoring  to  do  justice  to  the  progress  of 
civilization  in  this  reign,  I  should  regret  to  present  to 
the  reader  an  overcolored  picture  of  its  results.  In- 
deed, less  emphasis  should  be  laid  on  any  actual  re- 
sults than  on  the  spirit  of  improvement  which  they 
imply  in  the  nation,  and  the  liberal  dispositions  of  the 
government.  The  fifteenth  century  was  distinguished 
by  a  zeal  for  research  and  laborious  acquisition,  espe- 
cially in  ancient  literature,  throughout  Europe,  which 

43  Llorente,  Hist,  de  I'lnquisition,  torn.  i.  chap.  13,  art.  i. — "  Adempto 
per  inquisitiones,"  says  Tacitus  of  the  gloomy  times  of  Domitian,  "  et 
loquendi  audiendique  commercio."  (Vita  Agricolse,  sect.  2.)  Beau- 
marchais,  in  a  merrier  vein,  indeed,  makes  the  same  bitter  reflections : 
•*  II  s'est  ^tabli  dans  Madrid  un  systime  de  liberty  sur  la  vente  des  pro- 
ductions, qui  s'^tend  meme  k  celles  de  la  presse ;  et  que,  pourvu  que  je 
ne  parle  en  mes  Merits  ni  de  I'autorit^,  ni  de  culte,  ni  de  la  politique,  ni 
de  la  morale,  ni  des  gens  en  place,  ni  des  corps  en  credit,  ni  de  I'Op^ra, 
ni  des  autres  spectacles,  ni  de  personne  qui  tienne  k  quelque  chose,  je 
puis  tout  imprimer  librement,  sous  I'inspection  de  deux  ou  trois  cen- 
seurs."     Mariage  de  Figaro,  acte  S,  sc.  3. 


CLASSICAL   LEARNING.— SCIENCE. 


207 


showed  itself  in  Italy  in  the  beginning  of  the  age,  and 
in  Spain,  and  some  other  countries,  towards  the  close. 
It  was  natural  that  men  should  explore  the  long-V  ried 
trea'"..es  which  had  descended  from  their  ancestors, 
before  venturing  on  any  thing  of  their  own  creation. 
Their  efforts  were  eminently  sue  cessful ;  and,  by  opening 
an  acquaintance  with  the  immortal  productions  of 
ancient  literature,  they  laid  the  best  foundation  for  the 
cultivation  of  the  modern. 

In  the  sciences,  their  success  was  more  equivocal.  A 
blind  reverence  for  authority,  a  habit  of  speculation 
instead  of  experiment, — so  pernicious  in  physics, — in 
short,  an  ignorance  of  the  true  principles  of  philoso- 
phy, often  led  the  scholars  of  that  day  in  a  wrong 
direction.  Even  when  they  took  a  right  one,  their 
attainments,  under  all  these  impediments,  were  neces- 
sarily so  small  as  to  be  scarcely  perceptible,  when  viewed 
from  the  brilliant  heights  to  which  science  has  arrived 
in  our  own  age.  Unfortunately  for  Spain,  its  subse- 
quent advancement  has  been  so  retarded  that  a  com- 
parison of  the  fifteenth  century  with  those  which  suc- 
ceeded it  is  by  no  means  so  humiliating  to  the  former 
as  in  some  other  countries  of  Europe ;  and  it  is  cer- 
tain that  in  general  intellectual  fermentation  no  period 
has  surpassed,  if  it  can  be  said  to  have  rivalled,  the  age 
of  Isabella. 


'"\ 


II 


CHAPTER    XX. 

CASTILIAN   LITERATURE. — ROMANCES   OF   CHIVALRY.— 
LYRICAL   POETRY. — THE   DRAMA. 

This  Reign  an  Epoch  in  Polite  Letters. — Romances  of  Chivalry.— 
Ballads  ot Romances. — Moorish  Minstrelsy. — "  Cancionero  general." 
— Its  Literary  Value. — Rise  of  the  Spanish  Drama. — Criticism  on 
"  Celestina." — Encina. — Naharro. — Low  Condition  of  the  Stage. — 
National  Spirit  of  the  Literature  of  this  Epoch. 

Ornamental  or  polite  literature,  which,  emanating 
from  the  taste  and  sensibility  of  a  nation,  readily  ex- 
hibits its  various  fluctuations  of  fashion  and  feeling, 
was  stamped  in  Spain  with  the  distinguishing  charac- 
teristics of  this  revolutionary  age.  The  Provencal, 
which  reached  such  high  perfection  in  Catalonia,  and 
subsequently  in  Aragon,  as  noticed  in  an  introductory 
chapter,*  expired  with  the  union  of  this  monarchy  with 
Castile,  and  the  dialect  ceased  altogether  to  be  applied 
to  literary  purposes  after  the  Castilian  became  the  lan- 
guage of  the  court  in  the  united  kingdoms.  The 
poetry  of  Castile,  which  throughout  the  present  reign 
continued  to  breathe  the  same  patriotic  spirit  and  to 
exhibit  the  same  national  peculiarities  that  had  dis- 
tinguished it  from  the  time  of  the  Cid,  submitted  soon 

«  Eichhorn,GeschichtcderKulturundLitteraturdernen(  renEuropa 
(Gottingen,  1796-1811),  pp.  129,  130.— See  also  the  conclusion  of  the 
Introduction,  Sec.  2,  of  this  History. 
(  208  ) 


ROMANTIC  FICTION  AND  POETRY. 


209 


after  Ferdinand's  death  to  the  influence  of  the  more 
polished  Tuscan,  and  henceforth,  losing  somewhat  of 
its  distinctive  physiognomy,  assumed  many  of  the 
prevalent  features  of  continental  literature.  Thus 
the  reign  of  Ferdinand  and  Isabella  becomes  an  epoch 
as  memorable  in  literary  as  in  civil  history. 

The  most  copious  vein  of  fancy,  in  that  day,  was 
turned  in  the  direction  of  the  prose  romance  of  chiv- 
alry, now  seldom  disturbed,  even  in  its  own  country, 
except  by  the  antiquary.  The  circumstances  of  the 
age  naturally  led  to  its  production.  The  romantic 
Moorish  wars, — teeming  with  adventurous  exploit  and 
picturesque  incident,  carried  on  with  the  natural  ene- 
mies of  the  Christian  knight,  and  opening  moreover 
all  the  legendary  stores  of  Oriental  fable, — the  stirring 
adventures  by  sea  as  well  as  land,  above  all,  the  dis- 
covery of  a  world  beyond  the  waters,  whose  unknown 
regions  gave  full  scope  to  the  play  of  the  imagination, 
all  contributed  to  stimulate  the  appetite  for  the  incred- 
ible chimeras,  the  magnanime  menzogne,  of  chivalry. 
The  publication  of  "Amadis  de  Gaula"  gave  a  de- 
cided impulse  to  this  popular  feeling.  This  romance, 
which  seems  now  well  ascertained  to  be  the  production 
of  a  Portuguese  in  the  latter  half  of  the  fourteenth  cen- 
tury,' was  first  printed  in  a  Spanish  version,  probably 

»  Nic.  Antonio  seems  unwilling  to  relinquish  the  pretensions  of  his 
own  nation  to  the  authorship  of  this  romance.  (See  Bibliotheca  Nova, 
tom.  ii.  p.  394.)  Later  critics,  and  among  them  Lampillas  (Ensayo 
hist6rico-apolog6tico  de  la  Literatura  Espaflola,  tom.  v.  p.  i68),  who 
resigns  no  more  than  he  is  compelled  to  do,  are  less  disposed  to  con- 
test the  claims  of  the  Portuguese.  Mr.  Southey  has  cited  two  docu- 
ments, one  historical,  the  other  poetical,  which  seem  to  place  its  com- 
position by  Lobeira  in  the  latter  part  of  the  fourteenth  century  beyond 
Vol.  II.— 14 


ii 


2IO 


CASTILIAN  LITERATURE. 


not  far  from  1490.^  Its  editor,  Garci  Ordoflez  de 
Montalvo,  states  in  his  prologue  that  **  he  corrected  it 
from  the  ancient  originals,  pruning  it  of  all  superfluous 
phrases,  and  substituting  others  of  a  more  polished 
and  elegant  style.  "<    How  far  its  character  was  bene- 

any  reasonable  doubt.  (See  Amadis  of  Gaul,  pref., — also  Sarmiento, 
Memorias  para  la  Historia  de  la  Poesia  y  Poetas  E^paaoles,  Obras 
posthumas  (Madrid,  1775),  torn.  i.  p.  339.)  Bouterwek,  and  after  him 
Sismondi,  without  adducing  any  authority,  have  fixed  the  era  of  Lo- 
beira's  death  at  1335.  Dante,  who  died  but  four  years  previous  to  that 
date,  furnishes  a  negative  argument,  at  least,  against  this,  since  in  his 
notice  of  some  of  the  best  names  1 1  chivalry  then  known,  he  makes  no 
allusion  to  Amadis,  the  best  of  all.  Cf.  Inferno,  cantos  v.,  xxxi.,  xxxii.; 
also  De  Vulgari  Eloquenti^,  cap.  xo. 

3  The  excellent  old  romance  "  Tirante  the  White,"  Tirant  lo  Blanch, 
was  printed  at  Valencia  in  1490.  (See  Mendez,  Typographia  Espafiola, 
torn.  i.  pp.  72-75.)  If,  as  Cervantes  asserts,  the  "Amadis"  was  the  first 
book  of  chivalry  printed  in  Spain,  it  must  have  been  anterior  to  this 
date,  This  is  rendered  probable  by  Montalvo's  prologue  to  his  edition 
at  Saragossa,  in  1521,  still  preserved  in  the  royal  library  at  Madrid, 
where  he  alludes  to  his  former  publication  of  it  in  the  time  of  Ferdi- 
nand and  Isabella.  (Cervantes,  Don  Quixote,  ed.  Pellicer,  Discurso 
prelim.) — Mr.  Dunlop,  who  has  analyzed  these  romances  with  a  patience 
that  more  will  be  disposed  to  commend  than  imitate,  has  been  led  into 
the  error  of  supposing  that  the  first  edition  of  the  "  Amadis"  v/as  printed 
at  Seville,  in  1526,  from  detached  fragments  appearing  in  the  time  of 
Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  and  subsequently  by  Montalvo,  at  Salamanca, 
in  1547.    See  History  of  Prose  Fiction,  vol.  ii.  chap.  10. 

4  The  following  is  Montalvo's  brief  prologue  to  the  introduction 
of  the  first  book:  "  Aqvi  comien9a  el  primero  libro  del  esfor9ado  et 
virtuoso  cauallero  Amadis  hijo  del  rey  Perion  de  Gaula :  y  dela  reyna 
Elisena :  el  qual  fue  coregido  y  emendado  por  el  honrado  y  virtuoso 
cauallero  Garciordoftes  de  Montalvo,  regidor  dela  noble  uilla  de  Me- 
dina del  campo ;  et  corregiolo  delos  antiguos  originales  que  estauan 
corruptos,  et  compuestos  en  antiguo  estilo :  por  falta  delos  diferentes 
escriptores.  Quitando  muchas  palabras  superfluas :  et  poniendo  otras 
de  mas  polido  y  elegante  estilo :  tocantes  ala  caualleria  et  actos  della, 
animando  los  coracones  gentiles  de  manzebos  belicosos  que  con  gran* 


ROMANTIC  FICTION  AND  POETRY. 


311 


fited  by  this  work  of  purification  may  be, doubted; 
although  it  is  probable  it  did  not  suffer  so  much  by 
such  a  process  as  it  would  have  done  in  a  later  and 
more  cultivated  period.  The  simple  beauties  of  this 
fine  old  romance,  its  bustling  incidents,  relieved  by 
the  delicate  play  of  Oriental  machinery,  its  general' 
truth  of  portraiture,  above  all,  the  knightly  character 
of  the  hero,  who  graced  the  prowess  of  chivalry  with  a 
courtesy,  modesty,  and  fidelity  unrivalled  in  the  crea- 
tions of  romance,  soon  recommended  it  to  popular 
favor  and  imitation.  A  continuation,  bearing  the  title 
of  **  Las  Sergas  de  Esplandian,"  was  given  to  the  world 
by  Montalvo  himself,  and  grafted  on  the  original  stock, 
as  the  fifth  book  of  the  Amadis,  before  1510.  A  sixth, 
containing  the  adventures  of  his  nephew,  was  printed 
at  Salamanca  in  the  course  of  the  last-mentioned  year ; 
and  thus  the  idle  writers  of  the  day  continued  to  prop- 
agate dulness  through  a  series  of  heavy  tomes,  amount- 
ing in  all  to  four-and-twenty  books,  until  the  much- 
abused  public  would  no  longer  suffer  the  name  of 
Amadis  to  cloak  the  manifold  sins  of  his  posterity.* 

dissimo  aflFetto  abra»an  el  arte  dela  milicia  corporal  nnimando  la  im- 
mortal memoria  del  arte  de  caualleria  no  menos  honestissimo  que 
glorioso."    Amadis  de  Gaula  (Venecia,  1533),  fol.  i. 

S  Nic.  Antonio  enumerates  the  editions  of  thirteen  of  this  doughty 
family  of  knights-errant.  (Bibliotheca  Nova,  tom.  ii.  pp.  394,  395.)  He 
dismisses  his  notice  with  the  reflection,  somewhat  more  ciiaritable  than 
that  of  Don  Quixote's  curate,  that  "  he  had  felt  little  interest  in  investi- 
gating these  fables,  yet  was  willing  to  admit,  with  others,  that  their 
reading  was  not  wholly  useless."  Moratin  has  collected  an  appalling 
catalogue  of  fart  of  the  books  of  chivalry  published  in  Spain  at  the 
close  of  the  fifteenth  and  in  the  following  century.  The  first  on  the  list 
is  the  Carcel  de  Amor,  por  Diego  Hernandez  de  San  Pedro,  en  Burgos* 
afSo  de  1496,    Obras,  tom.  i.  pp.  93-98. 


t; 


fill 


aia 


CASTILIAN  LITERATURE. 


Other  knights-errant  were  sent  roving  about  the  world 
at  the  same  time,  whose  exploits  would  fill  a  library ; 
but  fortunately  they  have  been  permitted  to  pass  into 
oblivion,  from  which  a  few  of  their  names  only  have 
been  rescued  by  the  caustic  criticism  of  the  curate  in 
Don  Quixote ;  who,  it  will  be  remembered,  after  de- 
claring that  the  virtues  of  the  parent  shall  not  avail  his 
posterity,  condemns  them  and  their  companions,  with 
one  or  two  exceptions  only,  to  the  fatal  funeral  pile.* 

These  romances  of  chivalry  must  have  undoubtedly 
contributed  to  nourish  those  exaggerated  sentiments 
which  from  a  very  early  period  entered  into  the  Span- 
ish character.  Their  evil  influence,  in  a  literary  view, 
resulted  less  from  their  improbabilities  of  situation, 
which  they  possessed  in  common  with  the  inimitable 
Italian  epics,  than  from  the  false  pictures  which  they 
presented  of  human  character,  familiarizing  the  eye  of 
the  reader  with  such  models  as  debauched  the  taste 
and  rendered  him  incapable  of  relishing  the  chaste 
and  sober  productions  of  art.  It  is  remarkable  that 
the  chivalrous  romance,  which  was  so  copiously  culti- 
vated through  the  greater  part  of  the  sixteenth  century, 

•  Cervantes,  Don  Quixote,  torn.  i.  part.  I,  cap.  6. — The  curate's  wrath 
is  very  emphatically  expressed :  "  Pues  vayan  todos  al  corral,  dixo  el 
Cura,  que  a  trueco  de  quemar  a  la  reyna  Pintiquiniestra,  y  al  pastor 
Darinel  y  a  sus  eglogas,  y  a  las  endiabladas  y  revueltas  razones  de  su 
autor,  quemara  con  ellos  al  padre  que  me  engendro  si  andubiera  en 
figura  de  raballero  andante."  The  author  of  the  "  Didlogo  de  las 
Lenguas"  chimes  in  with  the  same  tone  of  criticism.  "  Los  qualcs," 
he  says,  speaking  of  books  of  chivalry,  "  de  mas  de  ser  mentirossissi- 
mos,  son  tal  mal  compuestos,  assi  por  dezir  las  mentiras  tan  desver< 
gonfadas,  como  por  tener  el  estilo  desbara9ado,  que  no  ay  buen 
estomago  que  lo  pueda  leer."  Apud  Mayans  y  Siscar,  Origenes,  torn, 
ii.  p.  158. 


11 


ROMANTIC  FICTION  AND  POETRY. 


313 


Bliould  not  have  assumed  the  poetic  form,  as  in  Italy, 
and  indeed  among  our  Norman  ancestors ;  and  that  in 
its  prose  dress  no  name  of  note  appears  to  raise  it  to  a 
high  degree  of  literary  merit.  Perhaps  such  a  result 
might  have  been  achieved,  but  for  the  sublime  parody 
of  Cervantes,  which  cut  short  the  whole  race  of  knights- 
errant,  and,  by  the  fine  irony  which  it  threw  around 
the  mock  heroes  of  chivalry,  extinguished  them  forever.' 

The  most  popular  poetry  of  this  period,  that  spring- 
ing from  the  body  of  the  people,  and  most  intimately 
addressed  to  it,  is  the  ballads,  or  romances,  as  they  are 
termed  in  Spain.  These,  indeed,  were  familiar  to  the 
Peninsula  as  far  back  as  the  twelfth  and  thirteenth  cen- 
turies ;  but  in  the  present  reign  they  received  a  fresh 
impulse  from  the  war  with  Granada,  and  composed, 
under  the  name  of  the  Moorish  ballads,  what  may  per- 
haps be  regarded,  without  too  high  praise,  as  the  most 
exquisite  popular  minstrelsy  of  any  age  or  country. 

The  humble  narrative  lyrics  making  up  the  mass  of 
ballad  poetry,  and  forming  the  natural  expression  of  a 
simple  state  of  society,  would  seem  to  be  most  abun- 
dant in  nations  endowed  with  keen  sensibilities,  and 
placed  in  situations  of  excitement  and  powerful  interest 

7  The  labors  of  Bowles,  Rios,  Arrieta,  Pellicer,  and  Navarrete  would 
seem  to  have  left  little  to  desire  in  regard  to  the  illustration  of  Cer- 
vantes. But  the  commentaries  of  Clemencin,  published  since  this 
chapter  was  written,  in  1833,  show  how  much  yet  remained  to  be  sup- 
plied. They  afford  the  most  copious  illustrations,  both  literary  and 
historical,  of  his  author,  and  exhibit  that  nice  taste  in  verbal  criticism 
which  is  not  always  joined  with  such  extensive  erudition.  Unfortu- 
nately, the  premature  death  of  Clemencin  has  left  the  work  unfinished ; 
but  the  fragment  completed,  which  reaches  to  the  close  of  the  First 
Part,  is  of  sufficient  value  permanently  to  associate  the  name  of  its 
author  with  that  of  the  greatest  genius  of  his  country. 


214 


CASTILIAN  LITERATURE. 


fitted  to  develop  them.  The  light  and  lively  French 
have  little  to  boast  of  in  this  way."  The  Italians,  with 
a  deeper  poetic  feeling,  were  too  early  absorbed  in  the 
gross  business  habits  of  trade,  and  their  literature  re- 
ceived too  high  a  direction  from  its  master  spirits  at  its 
very  commencement,  to  allow  any  considerable  devia- 
tion in  this  track.  The  countries  where  it  has  most 
thriven  are  probably  Great  Britain  and  Spain.  The 
English  and  the  Scotch,  whose  constitutionally  pensive 
and  even  melancholy  temperament  has  been  deepened 
by  the  sober  complexion  of  the  climate,  were  led  to 
the  cultivation  of  this  poetry  still  further  by  the  stir- 
ring scenes  of  feudal  warfare  in  which  they  were  en- 
gaged, especially  along  the  borders.  The  Spaniards, 
to  similar  vources  of  excitement,  added  that  of  high 
religious  ft  eling  in  their  struggles  with  the  Saracens, 
which  gave  a  somewhat  loftier  character  to  their  effu- 
sions. Fortunately  for  them,  their  early  annals  gave 
birth,  in  the  Cid,  to  a  hero  whose  personal  renown 
was  identified  with  that  of  his  country,  and  round 
whose  name  might  be  concentrated  all  the  scattered 
lights  of  song,  thus  enabling  the  nation  to  build  up 
its  poetry  on  the  proudest  historic  recollections.'    The 


8  The  fabliaux  cannot  fairly  be  considered  as  an  exception  to  this. 
These  graceful  little  performances,  the  work  of  professed  bards,  who 
had  nothing  further  in  view  than  the  amusement  of  a  listless  audience, 
have  little  claim  to  be  considered  as  the  expression  of  national  feeling 
or  sentiment.  The  poetry  of  the  south  of  France,  more  impassioned 
and  lyrical  in  its  character,  wears  the  stamp  not  merely  of  patrician 
elegance,  but  refined  artifice,  which  must  not  be  confounded  with  the 
natural  flow  of  popular  minstrelsy. 

9  How  far  the  achievements  claimed  for  the  Campeador  are  strictly 
true,  is  little  to  the  purpose.     It  is  enough  that  they  were  received  as 


ROMANTIC  FICTION  AND  POETRY. 


215 


feats  of  many  other  heroes,  fabulous  as  well  as  real, 
were  permitted  to  swell  the  stream  of  traditionary 
verse ;  and  thus  a  body  of  poetical  annals,  springing 
up  as  it  were  from  the  depths  of  the  people,  was  be- 
queathed from  sire  to  son,  contributing,  perhaps,  more 
powerfully  than  any  real  history  could  have  done,  to 
infuse  a  common  principle  of  patriotism  into  the  scat- 
tered members  of  the  nation. 

There  is  considerable  resemblance  between  the  early 
Spanish  ballad  and  the  British.  The  latfer  affords 
more  situations  of  pathos  and  deep  tenderness,  partic- 
ularly those  of  suffering,  uncomplaining  love,  a  favor- 
ite theme  with  old  English  poets  of  every  description." 
We  do  not  find,  either,  in  the  ballads  of  the  Peninsula, 
the  wild,  romantic  adventures  of  the  roving  outlaw,  of 
the  Robin  Hood  genus,  which  enter  so  largely  into 
English  minstrelsy.  The  former  are  in  general  of  a 
more  sustained  and  chivalrous  character,  less  gloomy, 
and,  although  fierce,  not  so  ferocious,  nor  so  decidedly 
tragical  in  their  aspect,  as  the  latter.  The  ballads  of 
the  Cid,  however,  have  many  points  in  common  with 
the  border  poetry  ;  the  same  free  and  cordial  manner, 
the  same  love  of  military  exploit,  relieved  by  a  certain 
tone  of  generous  gallantry,  and  accompanied  by  a 
strong  expression  of  national  feeling. 

true,  throughout  the  Peninsula,  as  far  back  as  the  twelfth,  or  at  latest 
the  thirteenth,  century. 

'o  One  exception,  among  others,  readily  occurs  in  the  pnthetic  old 
ballad  of  the  Conde  Alarcos,  whose  woeful  catastrophe,  with  the  unre- 
sisting suffering  of  the  countess,  suggests  many  points  of  coincidence 
with  the  English  minstrelsy.  The  English  reader  will  find  a  version 
of  it  in  the  "Ancient  Poetry  and  Romances  of  Spain"  from  the  pen 
of  Mr.  Bownng,  to  whom  the  literary  world  is  so  largely  indebted  for 
an  acquaintance  with  the  popular  minstrelsy  of  Europe. 


'.  1 


ai6 


CASTILIAN  LITERATURE. 


The  resemblance  between  the  minstrelsy  of  the  two 
countries  vanishes,  however,  as  we  approach  the  Moor- 
ish ballads.  The  Moorish  wars  had  always  afforded 
abundant  themes  of  interest  for  the  Castilian  muse; 
but  it  was  not  till  the  fall  of  the  capital  that  the  very 
fountains  of  song  were  broken  up,  and  those  beautiful 
ballads  were  produced,  which  seem  like  the  echoes  of 
departed  glory  lingering  round  the  ruins  of  Granada. 
Incompetent  as  these  pieces  may  be  as  historical  rec- 
ords;  they  are  doubtless  sufficiently  true  to  manners." 
They  present  a  most  remarkable  combination  of  not 
merely  the  exterior  form,  but  the  noble  spirit  of  Euro- 
pean chivalry,  with  the  gorgeousness  and  effeminate 
luxury  of  the  East.  They  are  brief,  seizing  single 
situations  of  the  highest  poetic  interest,  and  striking 
the  eye  of  the  reader  with  a  brilliancy  of  execution  so 


«» I  have  already  noticed  the  insufficiency  of  the  romances  for  authentic 
history,  in  Part  I.  chap.  8,  note  31.  My  conclusions  there  have  been 
confirmed  by  Mr.  Irving  (whose  researches  have  led  him  in  a  similar 
direction)  in  his  "  Alhambra,"  published  nearly  a  year  after  the  above 
note  was  written.  The  great  source  of  the  popular  misconceptions 
respecting  the  domestic  history  of  Granada  is  Gines  Perez  de  Hita, 
whose  work,  under  the  title  of  "  Historia  de  los  Vandos  de  los  Zegries 
y  Abencerrages,  Cavalleros  Moros  de  Granada,  y  las  Guerras  civiles 
que  huvo  en  ella,"  was  published  at  Alcald  in  1604.  This  romance, 
written  in  prose,  embodied  many  of  the  old  Moorish  ballads,  whose 
singular  beauty,  combined  with  the  romantic  and  picturesque  character 
of  the  work  itself,  soon  made  it  extremely  popular,  until  at  length  it 
seems  to  have  acquired  a  degree  of  the  historical  credit  claimed  for  it 
by  its  author  as  a  translation  from  an  Arabic  chronicle;  a  credit 
which  has  stood  it  in  good  stead  with  the  tribe  of  travel-mongers  and 
raconteurs,  persons  always  of  easy  faith,  who  have  propagated  its  fables 
far  and  wide.  Their  credulity,  however,  may  be  pardoned  in  what  has 
imposed  on  the  perspicacity  of  so  cautious  an  historian  as  Miiller. 
AUgemeine  Geschichte  (1817),  Band  ii.  S.  504. 


ROMANTIC  FICTION  AND  POETRY. 


217 


artless  in  appearance  withal  as  to  seem  rather  the  effect 
of  accident  than  study.  We  are  transported  to  the 
gay  seat  of  Moorish  power,  and  witness  the  animating 
bustle,  its  pomp  and  its  revelry,  prolonged  to  the  last 
hour  of  its  existence.  The  bull-fight  of  the  Vivar- 
rambla,  the  graceful  tilt  of  reeds,  the  amorous  knights 
with  their  quaint  significant  devices,  the  dark  Zegris, 
or  Gomeres,  and  the  royal,  self-devoted  Abencerrages, 
the  Moorish  maiden  radiant  at  the  tourney,  the  moon- 
light serenade,  the  stolen  interview,  where  the  lover 
gives  vent  to  all  the  intoxication  of  passion  in  the 
burning  language  of  Arabian  metaphor  and  hyperbole," 
— these,  and  a  thousand  similar  scenes,  are  brought 
before  the  eye,  by  a  succession  of  rapid  and  animated 
touches,  like  the  lights  and  shadows  of  a  landscape. 
The  light  trochaic  structure  of  the  redondilla,^^  as  the 

»»  Thus,  in  one  of  these  romances  we  have  a  Moorish  lady  "  shedding 
drops  of  liquid  silver,  and  scattering  her  hair  of  Arabian  gold,"  over  the 
corpse  of  her  murdered  husband ! 

"  Sobre  el  cuerpo  de  Albencayde 
Destila  liqiiida  plata, 
Y  convertida  en  cabellos 
Esparce  el  oro  de  Arabia." 

Can  any  thing  be  more  Oriental  than  this  imagery  ?  In  another  we 
have  an  "  hour  of  years  of  impatient  hopes ;"  a  passionate  sally,  that 
can  scarcely  be  outmatched  by  Scriblerus.  This  taint  of  exaggeration, 
however,  far  from  being  peculiar  to  the  popular  minstrelsy,  has  found 
its  way,  probably  through  this  channel  in  part,  into  most  of  the  poetry 
of  the  Peninsula. 

*3  The  redondilla  may  be  considered  as  the  basis  of  Spanish  versifi- 
cation. It  is  of  great  antiquity,  and  compositions  in  it  are  still  e.xtant 
as  old  as  the  time  of  the  infante  Don  Manuel,  at  the  close  of  the  thir- 
teenth century.  (See  Cancionero  general,  fol.  207.)  The  redondilla 
admits  of  great  variety ;  but  in  the  romances  it  is  most  frequently  found 
to  consist  of  eight  syllables,  the  last  foot,  and  some  or  all  of  the  prc- 

K 


yj" 


ai8 


CASTILIAN  LITERATURE. 


Spanish  ballad  measure  is  called,  rolling  on  its  grace- 
ful, negligent  asonantef^*  whose  continued  repetition 

ceding,  as  the  case  may  be,  being  trochees.  (Rengifo,  Arte  poetica 
EspaAola  (Barcelona,  1727),  cap.  9,  44.)  Critics  have  derived  this 
delightful  measure  from  various  sources.  Sarmiento  traces  it  to  the 
hexameter  of  the  ancient  Romans,  which  may  be  bisected  into  something 
analogous  to  the  redondillas.  (Memorias,  pp.  168-171.)  Bouterwek 
thinks  it  may  have  been  suggested  by  the  songs  of  the  Roman  sol- 
diery. (Geschichte  der  Poesie  und  Beredsamkeit,  Band  iii.,  Einleitung, 
S.  20.)  Velazquez  borrows  it  from  the  rhyming  hexameters  of  the 
Spanish  Latin  poets,  of  which  he  gives  specimens  of  the  beginning  of 
the  fourteenth  century.  (Poesfa  Castellana,  pp.  77,  78.)  Later  critics 
refer  its  derivation  to  the  Arabic.  Conde  has  given  a  translation  of 
certain  Spanish  Arabian  poems,  in  the  meixsure  of  the  original,  from 
which  it  is  evident  that  the  hemistich  of  an  Arabic  verse  corresponds 
perfectly  with  the  redondilla.  (See  his  Dominacion  de  los  Arabes, 
passim.)  The  same  author,  in  a  treatise,  which  he  never  published,  on 
the  "  poesia  oriental,"  shows  more  precisely  the  intimate  affinity  sub- 
sisting between  the  metrical  form  of  the  Arabian  and  the  old  Castilian 
verse.  The  reader  will  find  an  analysis  of  his  manuscript  in  Part  L 
chap.  8,  note  50,  of  this  History.  This  theory  is  rendered  the  more 
plausible  by  the  influence  which  the  Arabic  has  exercised  on  Castilian 
versification  in  other  respects,  as  in  the  prolonged  repetition  of  the 
rhyme,  for  example,  which  is  wholly  borrowed  from  the  Spanish  Arabs ; 
whose  superior  cultivation  naturally  affected  the  unformed  literature 
of  their  neighbors,  and  through  no  channel  more  obviously  than  its 
popular  minstrelsy. 

»4  The  asonaiite  is  a  rhyme  made  by  uniformity  of  the  vowels,  with- 
out reference  to  the  consonants  ;  the  regular  rhyme,  which  obtains  in 
other  European  literatures,  is  distinguished  in  Spain  by  the  term  con- 
sonante.  Thus  the  four  following  words,  taken  at  random  from  a 
Spanish  ballad,  are  consecutive  asonantes :  regozijo,  pellico,  luzido, 
amarillo.  In  this  example,  the  two  last  syllables  have  the  assonance; 
although  this  is  not  invariable,  it  sometimes  falling  on  the  antepenul- 
tima  and  the  final  syllable.  (See  Rengifo,  Arte  poetica 'Espaiiola,  pp. 
214,  215,  218.)  There  is  a  wild,  artless  melody  in  the  asonaiite,  and  a 
graceful  movement,  coming  somewhere,  as  it  does,  betwixt  regular 
thyme  and  blank  verse,  which  would  make  its  introduction  very  de- 
sirable, but  not  very  feasible,  in  our  own  language.  An  attempt  of  the 


ROMANTIC  FICTION  AND  POETRY. 


219 


seems  by  its  monotonous  melody  to  prolong  the  note 
of  feeling  originally  struck,  is  admirably  suited  by  its 
flexibility  to  the  most  varied  and  opposite  expression  \  a 
circumstance  which  has  recommended  it  as  the  ordinary 
measure  of  dramatic  dialogue. 

Nothing  can  be  more  agreeable  than  the  general 
effect  of  the  Moorish  ballads,  which  combine  the  ele- 
gance of  a  riper  period  of  literature  with  the  natural 
sweetness  and  simplicity,  savoring  sometimes  even  of 
the  rudeness,  of  a  primitive  age.  Their  merits  have 
raised  them  to  a  sort  of  classical  dignity  in  Spain,  and 
have  led  to  their  cultivation  by  a  higher  order  of 
writers,  and  down  to  a  far  later  period,  than  in  any 
other  country  in  Europe.  The  most  successful  speci- 
mens of  this  imitation  may  be  assigned  to  the  early 
part  of  the  seventeenth  century ;  but  the  age  was  too 
late  to  enable  the  artist,  with  all  his  skill,  to  seize  the 
true  coloring  of  the  antique.  It  is  impossible,  at  this 
period,  to  ascertain  the  authors  of  these  venerable 
lyrics,  nor  can  the  exact  time  of  their  production  be 
now  determined ;  although,  as  their  subjects  are  chiefly 
taken  from  the  last  days  of  the  Spanish  Arabian  em- 
pire, the  larger  part  of  them  was  probably  posterior, 
but,  as  they  were  printed  in  collections  at  the  begin- 
ning of  the  sixteenth  century,  could  not  have  been 
long  posterior,  to  the  capture  of  Granada.     How  far 

kind  has  been  made  by  a  clever  writer  in  the  Retrospective  Review. 
(Vol.  iv.  art.  2.)  If  it  has  failed,  it  is  from  the  impediments  presented 
by  the  language,  which  has  not  nearly  the  same  number  of  vowel  ter- 
minations, nor  of  simple  uniform  vowel  sounds,  as  the  Spanish ;  the 
double  termination,  however  full  of  grace  and  beauty  in  the  Castilian, 
assumes,  perhaps  from  the  effect  of  association,  rather  a  doggerel  air  in 
tlie  English. 


\\ 


320 


CASTILIAN  LITERATURE. 


II  V. 


they  may  be  referred  to  the  conquered  Moors,  is  uncer- 
tain. Many  of  these  wrote  and  spoke  the  Castilian 
with  elegance,  and  there  is  nothing  improbable  in  the 
supposition  that  they  should  seek  some  solace  under 
present  evils  in  the  splendid  visions  of  the  past.  The 
bulk  of  this  poetry,  however,  was  in  all  probability  the 
creation  of  the  Spaniards  themselves,  naturally  attracted 
by  the  picturesque  circumstances  in  the  character  and 
condition  of  the  conquered  nation  to  invest  them  with 
poetic  interest. 

The  Moorish  romances  fortunately  appeared  after  the 
introduction  of  printing  into  the  Peninsula,  so  that 
they  were  secured  a  permanent  existence,  instead  of 
perishing  with  the  breath  that  made  them,  like  so 
many  of  their  predecessors.  This  misfortune,  which 
attaches  to  so  much  of  popular  poetry  in  all  nations, 
is  not  imputable  to  any  insensibility  in  the  Spaniards 
to  the  excellence  of  their  own.  Men  of  more  eru- 
dition than  taste  may  have  held  them  light,  in  com- 
parison with  more  ostentatious  and  learned  produc- 
tions. This  fate  has  befallen  them  in  other  countries 
than  Spain. '^    But  persons  of  finer  poetic  feeling  and 


'S  This  may  be  still  further  inferred  from  the  tenor  of  a  humorous, 
satirical  old  romance,  in  which  the  writer  implores  the  justice  of  AdoIIo 
on  the  heads  of  the  swarm  of  traitor  poets  who  have  deserted  tlie  • .  mp*  . 
themes  of  song,  the  Cids,  the  Laras,  the  Gonzalez,  to  eel  /^i  <lie 
Ganzuls  and  Abderrahmans  and  the  fantastical  fables  of  the  Moors ; 

"Tanta  Zayda  y  Adalifa, 
tanta  Dragiita  y  Daraxa, 
tan  to  Azarque  y  tanto  Adulce, 
tanto  Gazul,  y  Abenamar, 
tanto  alquizer  y  marlota, 
tanto  alniayzar,  y  alinalafa, 
tantas  femprisas  y  pluroas, 


ROAf ANTIC  FICTION  AND  POETRY. 


221 


more  enlarged  spirit  of  criticism  have  estimated  them 
as  a  most  essential  and  characteristic  portion  of  Cas- 
tilian  literature.  Such  was  the  judgment  of  the  great 
Lope  de  Vega,  who,  after  expatiating  on  the  extraor- 
dinary compass  and  sweetness  of  ♦^^  romance,  and  its 
adaptation  to  the  highest  subjt  .s,  commends  it  as 
worthy  of  all  estimation  for  its  peculiar  national  char- 
acter.'*   The  modern  Spanish  writers  have  adopted  a 

tantas  cifras  y  medallas, 
tanta  roperia  Mora. 
Y  en  vanderillas  y  adargas, 
tanto  mote,  y  tantas  motas 
muera  yo  sino  me  cansan. 
•  •  *  •  • 

Los  Alfunsos,  Ids  Henricos, 
los  Sanchos,  y  los  de  Lara, 
que  es  dellos,  y  que  es  del  Cid 
tanto  olvido  en  glorias  tantcts? 
ninguna  pliima  las  buela, 
ninguna  Musa  las  canta? 
Justicia,  Apollo,  justicia, 
vengadores  rayos  lan^a 
contra  Poetas  Moriscos." 


Dr.  Johnson's  opinions  are  well  known  in  regard  to  this  department 
of  English  literature,  which,  by  his  ridiculous  parodies,  he  succeeded 
for  a  time  in  throwing  into  the  shade,  or,  in  the  language  of  his  ad- 
miring biographer,  made  "  perfectly  contemptible."  Petrarch,  with 
like  pedantry,  rested  his  hopes  of  fame  on  his  Latin  epic,  and  gave 
away  his  lyrics  as  alms  to  ballad-singers.  Posterity,  deciding  on  surer 
principles  of  taste,  has  reversed  both  thc^e  decisions. 

i6"Algunos  quieren  que  sean  la  cartilla  de  los  Poetas;  yo  no  lo 
siento  assi ;  antes  bien  los  hallo  capaces,  no  solo  de  exprimir  y  de- 
clarar  qualquier  concepto  con  facil  dulzura,  pero  de  prosequir  toda 
grave  accion  de  numeroso  Poema.  Y  soy  tan  de  veras  Espanol,  que 
por  ser  en  nuestro  idioma  natural  este  genero,  no  me  puedo  persuadir 
que  no  sea  digno  de  toda  estimacion."  (Coleccion  de  Obras  sueltas 
(Madrid,  1776-9),  torn.  iv.  p.  176,  Pr61ogo.)  In  another  place,  he  finely 
styles  them  "  Iliads  without  a  Homer." 


ti 


222 


CASTILIAN  LITERArURE. 


similar  tone  of  criticism,  insisting  on  its  study  as  essen- 
tial to  a  correct  appreciation  and  comprehension  of  the 
genius  of  the  language.'' 

The  Castilian  ballads  were  first  printed  in  the  "Can- 
cionero  general"  of  Fernando  del  Castillo,  in  1511. 
They  were  first  incorporated  into  a  separate  work,  by 
Sepulveda,  under  the  name  of  **  Romances  sacados 
de  Historias  antiguas,"  printed  at  Antwerp,  in  1551." 
Since  that  period,  they  have  passed  into  repeated  edi- 
tions, at  home  and  abroad,  especially  in  Germany,  where 
they  have  been  illustrated  by  able  critics.''  Ignorance 
of  their  authors  and  of  the  era  of  their  production  has 
prevented  any  attempt  at  exact  chronological  arrange- 
ment ;  a  circumstance  rendered,  moreover,  nearly  im- 
possible by  the  perpetual  modification  which  the  origi- 
nal style  of  the  more  ancient  ballads  has  experienced 
in  their  transition  through  successive  generations ;  so 
that,  with  one  or  two  exceptions,  no  earlier  date  should 
probably  be  assigned  to  the  oldest  of  them,  in  their 
present  form,  than  the  fifteenth  century."    Another 

17  See,  among  others,  the  encomiastic  and  animated  criticism  of  Fer- 
nandez and  Quintana.  Fernandez,  Poesias  escogidas  de  nuestros  Can- 
cioneros  y  Romanceros  antiguos  (Madrid,  1796),  tom,  xvi.,  Prologo. — 
Quintana,  Poesias  selectas  Castellanas,  Introd.,  art.  4. 

»8  Nic.  Antonio,  Bibliotheca  Nova,  tom.  ii.  p.  10. — The  Spanish  trans- 
lators of  Bouterwek  have  noticed  the  principal  "  collections  and  earliest 
editions"  of  the  Romances.  This  original  edition  of  Sepulveda  has 
escaped  their  notice.    See  Literatura  Espaiiola,  pp.  217,  218, 

«9  See  Grimm,  Depping,  Herder,  etc.  This  last  poet  has  given  a 
selection  of  the  Cid  ballads,  chronologically  arranged,  and  translated 
with  eminent  simplicity  and  spirit,  if  not  with  the  scrupulous  fidelity 
usually  aimed  at  by  the  Germans.  S(  e  his  Sammtliche  Werke  (Wien, 
1813),  Band  iii. 

*>  Sarmiento,  Memorias,  pp.  242,  243. — Moratin  considers  that  none 
have  come  down  to  us,  in  their  original  costume,  of  an  earUer  date  than 


ROMANTIC  IICTION  AND  POETRY. 


223 


system  of  classification  has  been  adopted,  of  distrib- 
uting them  according  to  their  subjects ;  and  independ- 
ent coir  ''ons  also  of  the  separate  departments,  as 
ballads  .  the  Cid,  of  the  Twelve  Peers,  the  Morisco 
ballads,  and  the  like,  have  been  repeatedly  published, 
both  at  home  and  abroad." 

The  higher  and  educated  classes  of  the  nation  were 
not  insensible  to  the  poetic  spirit  which  drew  forth 
such  excellent  minstrelsy  from  the  body  of  the  people. 

John  II. 's  reign,  the  first  half  of  the  fifteenth  century.  (Obras,  to.i.  i. 
p.  84.)  The  Spanish  translators  of  Bouterwek  transcribe  a  romance, 
relating  to  the  Cid,  from  the  fathers  Bcrganza  and  Merino,  purporting 
to  exhibit  the  primitive,  uncorrupted  diction  of  the  thirteenth  century. 
Native  critics  are  of  course  the  only  ones  competent  to  questions  of  this 
sort;  but  to  the  less  experienced  eye  of  a  foreigner  the  style  of  this 
ballad  would  seem  to  resemble  much  less  that  geniiine  specimen  of  the 
versification  of  the  preceding  age,  the  poem  of  the  Cid,  than  the  com- 
positions of  the  fifteenth  and  sixteenth  centuries. 

»'  The  principle  of  philosophical  arrangement,  if  it  may  be  so  called, 
is  pursued  still  further  in  the  latest  Spanish  publications  of  the  romances, 
where  the  Moorish  minstrelsy  is  embodied  in  a  separate  volume  and 
distributed  with  reference  to  its  topics.  This  system  is  the  more  prac- 
ticable with  this  class  of  ballads,  since  it  far  exceeds  in  number  any 
other.  See  Duran,  Romancero  de  Romances  Moriscos.  The  Ro- 
mancero  I  have  used  is  the  ancient  edition  of  Medina  del  Campo, 
1602.  It  is  divided  into  nine  parts,  though  it  is  not  easy  to  see  on 
what  principle,  since  productions  differing  widely  in  date  and  tenor 
are  brought  into  juxtaposition.  The  collection  contains  nearly  a  thou- 
sand ballads,  which,  however,  fall  far  short  of  the  entire  number 
preserved,  as  may  easily  be  seen  by  reference  to  other  compilations. 
When  to  this  is  added  the  consideration  of  the  large  number  which 
insensibly  glided  into  oblivion  without  ever  coming  to  the  press,  one 
may  form  a  notion  of  the  immense  mass  of  these  humble  lyrics  which 
floated  among  the  common  people  of  Spain ;  and  we  shall  be  the  less 
disposed  to  wonder  at  the  proud  and  chivalrous  bearing  that  marks 
even  the  peasantry  of  a  nation  which  seems  to  breathe  the  very  air  of 
romantic  song. 


::i 


i:   [] 


fA 


224 


CASTILIAN  LITERATUKE. 


V'\ 


Indeed,  Castilian  poetry  bore  the  same  patrician  stamp 
through  the  whole  of  the  present  reign  which  had  been 
impressed  on  it  in  its  infancy.  Fortunately,  the  new 
art  of  printing  was  employed  here,  as  in  the  case  of 
the  romances f  to  arrest  those  fugitive  sallies  of  imagina- 
tion which  in  other  countries  were  permitted,  from  want 
of  this  care,  to  pass  into  oblivion  ;  and  cancioneros^  or 
collections  of  lyrics,  were  published,  embodying  the 
productions  of  this  reign  and  that  of  John  the  Second, 
thus  bringing  under  one  view  the  poetic  culture  of  the 
fifteenth  century. 

The  earliest  cancionero  printed  was  at  Saragossa,  in 
1492.  It  comprehended  the  works  of  Mena,  Manrique, 
and  six  or  seven  other  bards  of  less  note."  A  far  more 
copious  collection  was  made  by  Fernando  del  Castillo, 
and  first  published  at  Valencia,  in  151 1,  under  the  title 
of  "Cancionero  general,"  since  which  period  it  has 
passed  into  repeated  editions.  This  compilation  is 
certainly  more  creditable  to  Castillo's  industry  than 
to  his  discrimination  or  power  of  arrangement.     In- 


••  The  title  of  this  work  was  "  Coplas  de  Vit.i  Christi,  de  la  Cena 
con  la  Pasion,  y  de  la  Veronica  con  la  Resurreccion  de  nuestro  Re- 
demtor.  E  las  siete  Angustias  e  siete  Gozos  de  niicstra  Senora,  con 
otras  obras  mucho  provechosas."  It  concludes  with  the  following 
notice :  "  Fue  la  presente  obra  emprentada  en  la  insigne  Ciudad  de 
Zaragoza  de  Aragon  por  industria  e  expensas  de  Paulo  Hurus  de  Con- 
stancia  aleman.  A  27  dias  de  Noviembre,  1492."  (Mendez,  Typogra- 
phia  Espafiola,  pp.  134, 136.)  It  appears  there  were  two  or  three  other 
cancioneros  compiled,  none  of  wnich,  however,  were  admitted  to  the 
honors  of  the  press.  (Bouterwek,  Literatura  Espafiola,  nota.)  The 
learned  Castro,  some  fifty  years  since,  published  an  analysis  with  copious 
extracts  from  one  of  these,  made  by  Baena,  the  Jewish  physician  of  John 
II.,  a  copy  of  which  existed  in  the  royal  library  of  the  Escurial.  Biblio* 
theca  Elspafiola,  torn.  i.  p.  265  et  seq. 


ROMAJSITIC  FICTION  AND  POETRY. 


"5 


deed,  in  this  latter  respect  it  is  so  defective  that  it 
would  almost  seem  to  have  been  put  together  fortui- 
tously, as  the  pieces  came  to  hand.  A  large  portion 
of  the  authors  appear  to  have  been  persons  of  rank  j  a 
circumstance  to  which  perhaps  they  were  indebted, 
more  than  to  any  poetic  merit,  for  a  place  in  the  mis- 
cellany, which  might  have  been  decidedly  increased  in 
value  by  being  diminished  in  bulk.'' 

The  works  of  devotion  with  which  the  collection 
opens  are  on  the  whole  the  feeblest  portion  of  it.  We 
discern  none  of  the  inspiration  and  lyric  glow  which 
were  to  have  been  anticipated  from  the  devout,  en- 
thusiastic Spaniard.  We  meet  with  anagrams  on  the 
Virgin,  glosses  on  the  creed  and  pater  noster,  canciones 
on  original  sin  and  the  like  unpromising  topics,  all 
discussed  in  the  most  bald,  prosaic  manner,  with  abun- 
dance of  Latin  phrase,  scriptural  allusion,  and  common- 
place precept,  unenlivened  by  a  single  spark  of  true 
poetic  fire,  and  presenting  altogether  a  farrago  of  the 
most  fantastic  pedantry. 

The  lighter,  especially  the  amatory  poems,  are  much 
more  successfully  executed,  and  the  primitive  forms  of 
the  old  Castilian  versification  are  developed  with  con- 
siderable variety  and  beauty.  Among  the  most  agree- 
able effusions  in  this  way  may  be  noticed  those  of  Diego 
Lopez  de  Haro,  who,  to  borrow  the  encomium  of  a 

^  Cancionero  general,  passim. — Moratin  has  given  a  list  of  the  men 
of  rank  who  contributed  to  this  miscellany;  it  contains  the  names  of 
the  highest  nobility  of  Spain.  (Orig.  del  Teatro  Espariol,  Obras,  tom. 
i.  pp.  85,  86.)  Castillo's  Cancionero  passed  through  several  editions, 
the  latest  of  which  appeared  in  1573.  See  a  catalogue,  not  entirely 
complete,  of  the  different  Spanish  Cancioneros  in  Bouterwek,  Litera- 
tura  Espafiola,  trad.,  p.  217. 

Vol.  II.— 15  K* 


i;  "I 


226 


CASTILIAN  UTERATUKE. 


contemporary,  was  "  the  mirror  of  gallantry  for  the 
young  cavaliers  of  the  time."  There  are  few  verses  in 
the  collection  composed  with  more  facility  and  grace.'* 
Among  the  more  elaborate  pieces,  Diego  de  San  Pe- 
dro's **  Desprecio  de  la  Fortuna"  may  be  distinguished, 
not  si;  much  for  any  poetic  talent  which  it  exhibits,  as 
for  its  mercurial  and  somewhat  sarcastic  tone  of  senti- 
ment."' The  similarity  of  subject  may  suggest  a  par- 
allel between  it  and  the  Italian  poet  Guidi's  celebrated 
ode  on  Fortune  ;  and  the  different  styles  of  execution 
may  perhaps  be  taken  as  indicating  pretty  fairly  the 
distinctive  peculiarities  of  the  Tuscan  and  the  old  Span- 
ish school  of  poetry.  The  Italian,  introducing  the 
fickle  goddess  in  person  on  the  scene,  describes  her 
triumphant  march  over  the  ruins  of  empires  and  dynas- 
ties, from  the  earliest  time,  in  a  flow  of  lofty  dithyram- 
bic  eloquence,  adorned  with  all  the  brilliant  coloring 
of  a  stimulated  fancy  and  a  highly  finished  language. 
The  Castilian,  on  the  other  hand,  instead  of  this  splen- 
did personification,  deepens  his  verse  into  a  moral  tone, 
and,  dwelling  on  the  vicissitudes  and  vanities  of  human 
life,  points  his  reflections  with  some  caustic  warning, 
often  conveyed  with  enchanting  simplicity,  but  without 
the  least  approach  to  lyric  exaltation,  or  indeed  the 
affectation  of  it. 

This  proneness  to  moralize  the  song  is  in  truth  a 
characteristic   of  the   old   Spanish    bard.     He   rarely 

»4  Cancionero  general,  pp.  83-89. — Oviedo,  Quincuagenas,  MS. 

»S  Cancionero  general,  pp.  158-161. — Some  meagre  information 
respecting  this  person  is  given  by  Nic.  Antonio,  whose  biographical 
notices  may  be  often  charged  with  deficiency  in  chronological  data ;  a 
circumstance  perhaps  unavoidable  from  the  obscurity  of  their  subjects. 
Bibliotheca  Vetus,  torn.  ii.  lib.  10,  cap.  6. 


ROMANTIC  J'ICTION  AND   POETRY. 


aa; 


al)andons  himself  without  reserve  to  the  frolic  puerili- 
ties so  common  with  the  sister  Muse  of  Italy, 

"  Scritta  cosl  come  la  penna  getta, 
Per  fugjiir  I'  ozio,  e  non  per  ccrcar  gloria." 

It  is  true,  he  is  occasional))'  betrayed  by  verbal  sub- 
lilties  and  other  affectations  of  thfj  age  \*  but  even  his 
liveliest  sallies  are  apt  to  be  sea  ,»ned  with  a  moral  or 
sharpened  by  a  satiric  sentiment.  His  defects,  indeed, 
are  of  the  kind  most  opposed  to  tho^c  of  the  Italian 
poet,  showing  themselves,  especially  in  tla  more  e  ..b- 
orate  pieces,  in  a  certain  tumid  statelincss  and  ui^t- 
strained  energy  of  diction. 

On  the  whole,  one  cannot  survey  the  '  Cincionero 
general"  without  some  disappointment  at  the  little 
progress  of  the  poetic  art  since  the  reign  of  John  the 
Second,  at  the  beginning  of  the  century.  The  best 
pieces  in  the  collection  are  of  that  date,  and  no  rival 
subsequently  arose  to  compete  with  the  masculine 
strength  of  Mena  or  the  delicacy  and  fascinating 
graces  of  Santillana.  One  cause  of  this  tardy  progress 
may  have  been  the  direction  to  utility  manifested  in  this 

^  There  are  probably  more  direct  nuns  in  Petrarch's  lyrics  alone 
than  in  all  the  Cancionero  general. — T*.;;  >  is  anotlier  kind  of  niaiserie, 
however,  to  which  the  Spanish  poets  were  much  addicted,  being  th« 
transposition  of  the  word  in  every  variety  of  sense  and  combinatio« ; 
as,  for  example, 

"  Acordad  viies.ros  olvidos 
Y  olvuU  vuestros  acaerdos 
Porqtie  tales  desacnerdos 
Acuerden  vuestros  sentidos,"  etc. 

Cancionero  general,  M.  2i(^. 

It  was  such  subtilties  as  these,  entricades  razones,  as  Cervantes  calls 
tliem,  that  addled  the  brains  of  poor  Don  Quixote.   Tom.  i.  cap.  i. 


0  ; 


*, 


228 


CASTILIAN  LITERATURE. 


active  reign,  which  led  such  as  had  leisure  for  intellect- 
ual pursuits  to  cultivate  science,  rather  than  abandon 
themselves  to  the  mere  revels  of  the  imagination. 

Another  cause  may  be  found  in  the  rudeness  of  the 
language,  whose  delicate  finish  is  so  essential  to  the 
purposes  of  the  poet,  but  which  was  so  imperfect  at 
this  period  that  Juan  de  la  Encina,  a  popular  writer  of 
the  time,  complained  that  he  was  obliged,  in  his  ver- 
sion of  Virgil's  Eclogues,  to  coin,  as  it  were,  a  new 
vocabulary,  from  the  want  of  terms  corresponding  with 
the  original  in  the  old  one.''  It  was  not  until  the  close 
of  the  present  reign,  when  the  nation  began  to  breathe 
awhile  from  its  tumultuous  career,  that  the  fruits  of  the 
patient  cultivation  which  it  had  been  steadily  though 
silently  experiencing  began  to  manifest  themselves  in 
the  improved  condition  of  the  language  and  its  adap- 
tation to  the  highest  poetical  uses.  The  intercourse 
with  Italy,  moreover,  by  naturalizing  new  and  more 
finished  forms  of  versification,  afforded  a  scope  for  the 
nobler  efforts  of  the  poet,  to  which  the  old  Castilian 
measures,  however  well  suited  to  the  wild  and  artless 
movements  of  the  popular  minstrelsy,  were  altogether 
inadequate. 

We  must  not  dismiss  the  miscellaneous  poetry  of  this 
period  without  some  notice  of  the  "Coplas"  of  Don 
Jorge  Manrique,'^  on  the  death  of  his  father^  the  count 

!»7  Velazquez,  Poesfa  Castellana,  p.  122. — More  than  half  a  century 
later,  the  learned  Ambrosio  Morales  complained  of  the  barrenness 
of  the  Castilian,  which  he  imputed  to  the  too  exclusive  adoption  of  the 
Latin  upon  all  subjects  of  dignity  and  importance.  Obras.  torn.  xiv. 
pp.  147,  148. 

■8  L.  Marineo,  speaking  of  this  accomplished  nobleman,  styles  him 
"virum  satis  illustrem.     Eum  enim  poetam  et  philosophum  natura 


ROMANTIC  FICTION  AND  POETRY. 


229 


of  Paredes,  in  1474."  The  elegy  is  of  considerable 
length,  and  is  sustained  throughout  in  a  tone  of  the 
highest  moral  dignity ;  while  the  poet  leads  us  up  from 
the  transitory  objects  of  the  lower  world  to  the  con- 
templation of  that  imperishable  existence  which  Chris- 
tianity has  opened  beyond  the  grave.  A  tenderness 
pervades  the  piece,  which  may  remind  us  of  the  best 
manner  of  Petrarch ;  while,  with  the  exception  of  a 
slight  taint  of  pedantry,  it  is  exempt  from  the  meretri- 
cious vices  that  belong  to  the  poetry  of  the  age.  The 
effect  of  the  sentiment  is  heightened  by  the  simple 
turns  and  broken  melody  of  the  old  Castilian  verse,  of 
which  perhaps  this  may  be  accounted  the  most  finished 
specimen  ;  such  would  seem  to  be  the  judgment  of  his 
own  countrymen,**  whose  glosses  and  commentaries  on 
it  have  swelled  into  a  separate  volume.  3' 

I  shall  close  this  survey  with  a  brief  notice  of  the 
drama,  whose  foundations  may  be  said  to  have  been 
laid  during  this  reign.  The  sacred  plays,  or  mysteries, 
so  popular  throughout  Europe  in  the  Middle  Ages,  may 

formavit  ac  peperit."  He  unfortunately  fell  in  a  skirmish,  five  years 
after  his  father's  death,  in  1479.     Mariana,  Hist,  de  Espafia,  torn.  ii. 

P-  531. 

=9  An  elaborate  character  of  this  Quixotic  old  cavalier  may  be  found 
in  Pulgar,  Claros  Varones,  tit.  13. 

30  "  Don  Jorge  Manrique,"  says  Lope  de  Vega,  "  cuyas  coplas  Cas- 
tellanas  admiren  los  ingenios  estrangeros  y  merecen  estar  escritas  con 
letras  de  oro."     Obras  sueltas,  torn,  xii.,  Prologo. 

3»  Coplas  de  Don  Jorge  Manrique,  ed.  Madrid,  1779. — Didlogo  de 
las  Lenguas,  apud  Mayans  y  Siscar,  Origenes,  torn.  ii.  p.  149. — Man- 
rique's  Coplas  have  also  been  the  subject  of  a  separate  publication  in 
the  United  States.  Professor  Longfellow's  version,  accompanying  it, 
is  well  calculated  to  give  the  English  reader  a  correct  notion  of  the 
Castilian  bard,  and,  of  course,  a  very  exaggerated  one  of  the  literary 
culture  of  the  age. 


^1 


930 


CASTILIAN  LITERATURE. 


' 


be  traced  in  Spain  to  an  ancient  date.  Their  familiar 
performance  in  the  churches,  by  the  clergy,  is  recog- 
nized in  the  middle  of  the  thirteenth  century,  by  a  law 
of  Alfonso  the  Tenth,  which,  while  it  interdicted  certain 
profane  mummeries  that  had  come  into  vogue,  pre- 
scribed the  legitimate  topics  for  exhibition.-*' 

The  transition  from  these  rude  spectacles  to  more 
regular  dramatic  efforts  was  very  slow  and  gradual.  In 
141 4,  an  allegorical  comedy,  composed  by  the  cele- 
brated Henry,  marquis  of  Villena,  was  performed  at 
Saragossa,  in  the  presence  of  the  court.^     In  1469,  a 

3»  After  proscribing  certain  profane  mummeries,  the  law  confines  the 
clergy  to  the  representation  of  such  subjects  as  "  the  birth  of  our  Saviour, 
in  which  is  shown  how  the  angels  appeared,  announcing  his  nativity; 
also  his  advent,  and  the  coming  of  the  three  Magi  kings  to  worship 
him ;  and  his  resurrection,  showing  his  crucifixion  and  ascension  on 
the  third  day ;  and  other  such  things  leading  men  to  do  well  and  live 
constant  in  the  fliith."  (Siete  Partidas,  tit.  6,  ley  34.)  It  is  worth 
noting,  that  similar  abuses  continued  common  among  the  ecclesiastics 
down  to  Isabella's  reign,  as  may  be  inferred  from  a  decree,  very  simi- 
lar to  the  law  of  the  Partidas  above  cited,  published  by  the  council  of 
Aranda  in  X473.  (Apud  Moratin,  Obras,  torn.  i.  p.  87.)  Moratin  con- 
siders it  certain  that  the  representation  of  the  mysteries  existed  in 
Spain  as  far  back  as  the  eleventh  century.  The  principal  grounds  for 
this  conjecture  appear  to  be  the  fact  that  such  notorious  abuses  had 
crept  into  practice  by  the  middle  of  the  thirteenth  century  as  to  require 
the  intervention  of  the  law.  (Ibid.  pp.  11,  13.)  The  circumstance 
would  seem  compatible  with  a  much  more  recent  origin. 

33  Cervantes,  Coniedias  y  Entremeses  (Madrid,  1749),  tom.  i.,  pr6- 
logo  de  Nasnrre. — Velazquez,  Poesia  Castellana,  p.  86. — The  fifth 
volume  of  the  Memoirs  of  the  Spanish  Royal  Academy  of  History 
contains  a  dissertation  on  the  "  national  diversions,"  by  Don  Caspar 
Melchor  de  Jovellanos,  replete  with  curious  erudition,  and  exhibiting 
the  discriminating  taste  to  have  been  expected  from  its  accomplished 
author.  Among  these  antiquarian  researches  the  writer  has  included 
a  brief  view  of  the  first  theatrical  attempts  in  Spain.  See  Mem.  de  la 
Acad,  de  Hist.,  tom.  v.  Mem.  6. 


> 


ROMANTIC  FICTION  AND  POETRY. 


231 


dramatic  eclogue,  by  an  anonymous  author,  was  ex- 
hibited in  the  palace  of  the  count  of  Urefia,  in  the 
presence  of  Ferdinand,  on  his  coming  into  Castile  to 
espouse  the  infanta  Isabella. 3*  These  pieces  may  be 
regarded  as  the  earliest  theatrical  attempts,  after  the 
religious  dramas  and  popular  pantomimes  already 
noticed;  but  unfortunately  they  have  not  come  down 
to  us.  The  next  production  deserving  attention  is  a 
"  Dialogue  between  Love  and  an  Old  Man,"  imputed 
to  Rodrigo  Cota,  a  poet  of  whose  history  nothing 
seems  to  be  known,  ard  little  conjectured,  but  that  he 
flourished  during  the  reigns  of  John  the  Second  and 
Henry  the  Fourth.  The  dialogue  is  written  with  much 
vivacity  and  grace,  and  with  as  much  dramatic  move- 
ment as  is  compatible  with  only  two  interlocutors. 's 

34  Moratin,  Obras,  torn.  i.  p.  115. — Nasarre  (Cervantes,  Comedias, 
.pr61.),  Jovellanos  (Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de  Hist.,  torn.  v.  Memor.  6),   Pel- 

licer  (Oiigcn  y  Progreso  de  la  Comedia  (1804),  torn,  i,  p.  12),  and 
others,  refer  the  authorship  of  this  little  piece,  without  hesitation,  to 
Juan  de  la  Encina,  although  the  year  of  its  representation  corresponds 
precisely  with  that  of  his  birth.  The  prevalence  of  so  gross  a  blunder 
among  the  Spanish  scholars  shows  how  little  the  antiquities  of  their 
theatre  were  studied  before  the  time  of  Moratin. 

35  This  little  piece  has  been  published  at  length  by  Moratin,  in  the 
first  volume  of  his  works.  (See  Origenes  del  Teatro  Espanol,  Obras, 
tom.  i.  pp.  303-314.)  The  celebrated  marquis  of  S.intillana's  poetical 
dialogue,  "Comedieta  da  Ponza,"  has  no  pretensions  to  rank  as  a 
dramatic  composition,  notwithstanding  its  title,  which  is  indeed  as  little 
significant  of  its  real  character  as  the  term  "  Commcdia"  is  of  Dante's 
epic.  It  is  a  discourse  on  -a  vicissitudes  of  human  life,  suggested  by 
a  sea-figlit  near  Ponza  in  ^435.  It  is  conducted  without  any  attempt 
at  dramatic  action  or  character,  or,  indeed,  drnniatic  development  of 
any  sort.  The  same  remarks  may  be  made  of  the  political  satire 
"Mingo  Revulgo,"  which  appeared  in  Henry  IV. 's  reign.  Dialogue 
was  selected  by  these  authors  as  a  more  popular  and  spirited  medium 
than  direct  narrative  for  conveying  their  sentiments.  The  "Comedieta 


332 


CASTILIAN  LITERATURE. 


A  much  more  memorable  production  is  referred  to 
the  same  author,  the  tragicomedy  of  "Celestina,"  or 
"Calisto  and  Melibea,"  as  it  is  frequently  called.  The 
first  act,  indeed,  constituting  nearly  one-third  of  the 
piece,  is  all  that  is  ascribed  to  Cota.  The  remaining 
twenty  acts,  which,  however,  should  rather  be  denomi- 
nated scenes,  were  written  by  another  hand,  some — 
though,  to  judge  from  the  internal  evidence  aflorded 
by  the  style,  not  many — years  later.  The  second  au- 
thor was  Fernando  de  Roxas,  bachelor  of  law,  as  he 
informs  us,  who  composed  this  work,  as  a  sort  of  intel- 
lectual relaxation,  during  one  of  his  vacations.  The 
time  was  certainly  not  misspent.  The  continuation, 
however,  is  not  esteemed  by  the  Castilian  critics  as 
hr./ing  risen  quite  to  the  level  of  the  original  act. 3* 

da  Ponza"  has  never  appeared  in  print ;  the  copy  which  I  have  used 
is  a  transcript  from  the  one  in  the  Royal  Library  at  Madrid,  and  belongs 
to  Mr.  George  Ticknor. 

3*  Tragicomedia  de  Calisto  y  Melibea  (Alcald,  1586),  Introd. — 
Nothing  is  positively  ascertained  respecting  the  authorship  of  the  first 
act  of  the  Celestina.  Some  impute  it  to  Juan  de  Mena ;  others  with 
more  probability  to  Rodrigo  Cota  el  Tio,  of  Toledo,  a  person  who, 
although  literally  nothing  is  known  of  him,  has  in  some  way  or  other 
obtained  the  credit  of  the  authorship  of  some  of  the  most  popular  effu- 
sions of  the  fifteenth  century ;  such,  for  example,  as  the  Dialogue  above 
cited  of  "  Love  and  an  Old  Man,"  the  Coplas  of  "  Mingo  Revulgo," 
and  this  first  act  of  the  "  Celestina."  The  principal  foundation  of  these 
imputations  would  appear  to  be  the  bare  assertion  of  an  editor  of  the 
"  Dialogue  between  Love  and  an  Old  Man,"  which  appeared  at  Me- 
dina del  Campo  in  1569,  nearly  a  century,  probably,  after  Cota's  death ; 
another  example  of  the  obscurity  which  involves  the  history  of  the  early 
Spanish  drama.  Many  of  the  Castili.an  critics  detect  a  flavor  of  anti- 
quity in  the  first  act  which  should  carry  back  its  composition  as  far  as 
John  n.'s  reign,  Moratin  does  not  discern  this,  however,  and  is  in- 
clined to  refer  its  production  to  a  date  not  much  if  at  all  more  distant 
than  Isabella's  time.    To  the  unpractised  eye  of  a  foreigner,  as  far  as 


ROMANTIC  FICTION  AND  POETRY. 


233 


The  story  turns  on  a  love-intrigue.  A  Spanish  youth 
of  rank  is  enamored  of  a  lady,  whose  affections  he 
gains  with  some  difficulty,  but  whom  he  finally  seduces, 
through  the  arts  of  an  accomplished  courtesan,  whom 
the  author  has  introduced  under  the  romantic  name  of 
Celestina.  The  piece,  although  comic,  or  rather  senti- 
.nental,  in  its  progress,  terminates  in  the  most  tragical 
catastrophe,  in  which  all  the  principal  actors  r<.re  in- 
volved. The  general  texture  of  the  plot  is  exceed- 
ingly clumsy,  yet  it  affords  many  situations  of  deep 
and  varied  interest  in  its  progress.  The  principal 
characters  are  delineated  in  the  piece  with  considerable 
skill.  The  part  of  Celestina,  in  particular,  in  which  a 
veil  of  plausible  hypocrisy  is  thrown  over  the  deepest 
profligacy  of  conduct,  is  managed  with  much  address. 
The  subordinate  parts  are  brought  into  brisk  comic 
action,  with  natural  dialogue,  though  somewhat  ob- 
scene ;  and  an  interest  of  a  graver  complexion  is  raised 
by  the  passion  of  the  lovers,  the  timid,  confiding  ten- 
derness of  the  lady,  and  the  sorrows  of  the  broken- 
hearted parent.  The  execution  of  the  play  reminds 
us,  on  the  whole,  less  of  the  Spanish  than  of  the  old 
English  theatre,  in  many  of  its  defects  as  well  as 
beauties;  in  the  contrasted  strength  and  imbecility 
of  various  passages  ;  in  its  intermixture  of  broad  farce 
and  deep  tragedy;  in  the  unseasonable  introduction 
of  frigid  metaphor  and  pedantic  allusion  in  the  midst 
of  the   most  passionate  discourses ;    in   the  unveiled 


style  is  concerned,  the  whole  work  might  well  seem  the  production  of 
the  same  period.  Moratin,  Obras,  torn.  i.  pp.  88,  115,  116. — Dialogo 
de  las  Lenguas,  apud  Mayans  y  Siscar,  Origenes,  pp.  165-167. — Nic. 
Antonio,  Bibliotheca  Nova,  torn.  ii.  p.  263, 


234 


CASTILIAN  LITERArURE. 


voluptuousness  of  its  coloring,  occasionally  too  gross  for 
any  public  exhibition  ;  but,  above  all,  in  the  general 
strength  and  fidelity  of  its  portraiture. 

The  tragicomedy,  as  it  is  styled,  of  Celestina,  was 
obviously  never  intended  for  representation,  to  which 
not  merely  the  grossness  of  some  of  the  details,  but 
the  length  and  arrangement  of  the  piece,  rendered  it 
unsuitable.  But,  notwithstanding  this,  and  its  ap- 
proximation to  the  character  of  a  romance,  it  must  be 
admitted  to  contain  within  itself  the  essential  elements 
of  dramatic  composition;  and,  as  such,  it  is  extolled 
by  the  Spanish  critics,  as  opening  the  theatrical  career 
of  Europe.  A  similar  claim  has  been  maintained  for 
productions  nearly  contemporaneous  in  other  coun- 
tries, and  especially  for  Politian's  "Orfeo,"  which 
there  is  little  doubt  wa^  publicly  acted  before  1483. 
Notwithstanding  its  representation,  however,  the  **0r- 
feo,"  presenting  a  combination  of  the  eclogue  and  the 
ode,  without  any  proper  theatrical  movement,  or  at- 
tempt at  development  of  character,  cannot  fairly  come 
within  the  limits  of  dramatic  writing.  A  more  ancient 
example  than  either,  at  least  as  far  as  the  exterior  forms 
are  concerned,  may  be  probably  found  in  the  celebrated 
French  farce  of  Pierre  Pathelin,  printed  as  early  as 
1474,  having  been  repeatedly  played  during  the  pre- 
ceding century,  whicli,  with  the  requisite  modifica- 
tions, still  keeps  possession  of  the  stage.  The  pre- 
tensions of  this  piece,  however,  as  a  work  of  art,  are 
comparatively  humble ;  and  it  seems  fair  to  admit  that 
in  the  higher  and  more  important  elements  of  dramatic 
composition,  and  especially  in  the  delicate  and  at  the 
same  time  powerful  delineation  of  character  and  pas- 


ROMANTIC  FICTION  AND  POETRY. 


23s 


sion,  the  Spanish  critics  may  be  justified  in  regarding 
the  "Celestina"  as  having  led  the  way  in  modern 
Europe.^ 

Without  deciding  on  its  proper  classification  as  a 
work  of  art,  however,  its  real  merits  are  settled  by  its 
wide  popularity  both  at  home  and  abroad.  It  has  been 
translated  into  most  of  the  European  languages,  and 
the  preface  to  the  last  edition  published  in  Madrid,  so 
recently  as  1822,  enumerates  thirty  editions  of  it  in 
Spain  alone  in  the  course  of  the  sixteenth  century. 
Impressions  were  multiplied  in  Italy,  at  the  very  time 
when  it  was  interdicted  at  home  on  the  score  of  its 
immoral  tendency.  A  popularity  thus  extending 
through  distant  ages  and  nations  shows  how  faithfully 
it  is  built  Oil  the  principles  of  human  nature.^^ 

The  drama  assumed  the  pastoral  form,  in  its  early 
stages,  in  Spain,  as  in  Italy.  The  oldest  specimens  in 
this  way  which  have  come  down  to  us  are  the  produc- 

37  Such  is  the  high  encomium  of  the  Abate  Andres  (Letteratura,  torn. 
V.  part.  2,  lib.  i.) — Cervantes  does  not  hesitate  to  call  it  "  libro  divino;" 
and  the  acute  author  of  the  "  Didlogo  de  las  Lenguas"  concludes  a 
criticism  upon  it  with  the  remark  that  "  there  is  no  book  in  the  Cas- 
tilian  which  surpasses  it  in  the  propriety  and  elegance  of  its  diction." 
(Don  Quixote,  ed.  de  Pellicer,  torn.  i.  p.  239. — Mayans  y  Siscar,  torn, 
ii.  p.  167.) — Its  merits  indeed  seem  in  some  degree  to  have  disarmed 
even  the  severity  of  foreign  critics ;  and  Signorelli,  after  standing  up 
stoutly  in  defence  of  the  precedence  of  the  "  Orfeo"  as  a  dramatic  com- 
position, admits  the  "  Celestina"  to  be  a  "  work  rich  in  various  beauties, 
and  meriting  undoubted  applause.  In  fact,"  he  continues,  "  the  viva- 
city of  the  description  of  character,  and  faithful  portraiture  of  manners, 
have  made  it  immortal."  Storia  critica  de'  Teatri  antichi  e  moderni 
(Napoli,  1813),  torn.  vi.  pp.  146,  147. 

3*  Boutorwek,  Literatura  Espaiiola,  notas  de  traductores,  p.  234. — 
Andres,  Letteratura,  torn.  v.  pp.  170,  171. — Lampillas,  Letteratura 
Spagnuola,  torn.  vi.  pp.  57-59. 


i 


:■ 


h  Ii 


m 


236 


CASTILIAN  LITER  A  TURE. 


tions  of  Juan  de  la  Encina,  a  contemporary  of  Roxas. 
He  was  born  in  1469,  and,  after  completing  his  educa- 
tion at  Salamanca,  was  received  into  the  family  of  the 
duke  of  Alva.  He  continued  there  several  years,  em- 
ployed in  the  composition  of  various  poetical  works, 
among  others,  a  version  of  Virgil's  Eclogues,  which  he 
so  altered  as  to  accommodate  them  to  the  principal 
events  in  the  reign  of  Ferdinand  and  Isabella.  He 
visite'i  Italy  in  the  beginning  of  the  following  century, 
and  was  attracted  by  the  munificent  patronage  of  Leo 
the  Tenth  to  fix  his  residence  at  the  papal  court. 
While  there,  he  continued  his  literary  labors.  He 
embraced  the  ecclesiastical  profession ;  and  his  skill 
in  music  recommended  him  to  the  office  of  principal 
director  of  the  pontifical  chapel.  He  was  subsequently 
presented  with  the  priory  of  Leon,  and  returned  to 
Spain,  where  he  died  in  1534.* 

Encina's  works  first  appeared  at  Salamanca,  in  1496, 
collected  into  one  volume  folio.*'  Besides  other  po- 
etry, they  comprehend  a  number  of  dramatic  eclogues, 
sacred  and  profane :  the  former  suggested  by  topics 
drawn  from  Scripture,  like  the  ancient  mysteries ;  the 
latter  chiefly  amatory.  They  were  performed  in  the 
palace  of  his  patron,  the  duke  of  Alva,  in  the  presence 
of  Prince  John,  the  duke  of  Infantado,  and  other 

»  Rojas,  Viage  entretenido  (1614),  fol.  46. — Nic.  Antonio,  Biblio- 
theca  Nova,  toni.  i.  p.  684. — Moratin,  Obras,  torn.  i.  pp.  126,  127. — 
Pellicer,  Origen  de  la  Comedia,  torn.  i.  pp.  11,  12. 

*>  They  were  published  under  the  title  "  Cancionero  de  todas  las 
Obras  de  Juan  de  la  Encina  con  otras  afiadidas."  (Mendez,  Typogra- 
phia  Espaiiola,  p.  247.)  Subsequent  impressions  of  his  works,  more  or 
less  complete,  appeared  at  Salamanca  in  1509,  and  at  Saragossa  in  151a 
and  1516. — Moratin,  Obras,  torn.  i.  p.  127,  nota. 


ROMANTIC  FICTION  AND  POETRY. 


237 


eminent  persons  of  the  court;  and  the  poet  himself 
occasionally  assisted  at  the  representation.*' 

Encina's  eclogues   are   simple  compositions,   with 
little  pretence  to  dramatic  artifice.     The  story  is  too 

4«  The  comedian  Rojas,  who  flourished  in  the  beginning  of  the  fol- 
lowing century,  and  whose  "  Viage  entretenido"  is  so  essential  to  the 
knowledge  of  the  early  histrionic  art  in  Spain,  identifies  the  appearance 
of  Encina's  Eclogues  with  the  dawn  of  the  Castilian  drama.  His  verses 
may  be  worth  quoting : 

"  Que  es  en  niiestra  niadre  Espafia, 
porque  en  la  dichosa  era, 
que  aquellos  gloriosos  Reyes 
dignos  de  inemoria  eteriia 
Don  B'ernando  e  Ysabel 
(que  ya  con  los  santos  reynan) 
de  ecliar  de  Espafia  acabavan 
todos  los  Moriscos,  que  eran 
De  aquel  Reyno  de  Granada, 
y  entonces  se  dava  en  ella 
principio  a  la  Inquisicion, 
se  le  dio  a  nuistra  comedia. 
Juan  de  la  Encina  el  priinero, 
aquel  insigne  poeta, 
que  tanto  bien  empezo 
de  quien  tenemos  ires  eglogas 
Que  el  niismo  represento 
al  Alniirante  y  Duquessa 
de  Castilla,  y  de  Infantado 
que  estas  fueron  las  primeras 
Y  para  mas  honra  suya, 
y  de  la  comedia  nuestra, 
en  los  dias  que  Colon 
descubrio  la  gran  riqueza 
De  Indias  y  nuevo  mundo, 
y  el  gran  Capitan  empieza 
a  sugetar  aquel  Reyno 
de  Napoles,  y  sn  tierra. 
A  descubrirse  empezo 
el  uso  de  la  comedia 
porque  todos  se  animassen 
a  emprender  cosas  tan  buenas." 

fcl.46,  47. 


238 


CASTIL IAN  LI'l ERA  TURE. 


meagre  to  admit  of  much  ingenuity  or  contrivance  or 
to  excite  any  depth  of  interest.  There  are  few  interlo- 
cutors, seldom  more  than  three  or  four,  although  on  one 
occasion  rising  to  as  many  as  seven  ;  of  course  there 
is  little  scope  for  theatrical  action.  The  characters 
are  of  the  humble  class  belonging  to  pastoral  life,  and 
the  dialogue,  which  is  extremely  appropriate,  is  con- 
ducted with  facility;  but  the  rustic  condition  of  the 
speakers  precludes  anything  like  literary  elegance  or 
finish,  in  which  respect  they  are  doubtless  surpassed  by 
some  of  his  more  ambitious  compositions,  'i'here  is  a 
comic  air  imparted  to  them,  however,  and  a  lively 
colloquial  turn,  which  renders  them  very  agreeable. 
Still,  whatever  be  their  merit  as  pastorals,  they  are  en- 
titled to  little  consideration  as  specimens  of  dramatic 
art,  and  in  the  vital  spirit  of  dramatic  composition 
must  be  regarded  as  far  inferior  to  the  "Celestina." 
The  simplicity  of  these  productions,  and  the  facility 
of  their  exhibition,  which  required  little  theatrical 
decoration  or  costume,  recommended  them  to  popular 
imitation,  which  continued  long  after  the  regular  forms 
of  the  drama  were  introduced  into  Spain.*" 

The  credit  of  this  introduction  belongs  to  Bar- 
tolome  Torres  de  Naharro,  often  confounded  by  the 
Castilian  writers  themselves  with  a  player  of  the  same 
name  who  flourished  half  a  century  later.^^    Few  par- 

♦»  Signorelli,  correcting  what  he  denominates  the  "  romance"  of  Lam- 
pillas,  considers  Encina  to  have  composed  only  one  pastoral  drama, 
and  that  on  occasion  of  Ferdinand's  entrance  into  Castile.  The  critic 
should  have  been  more  charitable,  as  he  has  made  two  blunders  him- 
self in  correcting  one.     Storia  critica  de'  Teatri,  torn.  iv.  pp.  192,  193. 

43  Andres,  confounding  Torres  de  Naharro  the  poet  with  Naharro 
the  comedian,  who  flourished  about  half  a  century  later,  is  led  into  a 


ROMANTIC  FICTION  AND   POETRY. 


ai9 


ticulars  have  been  ascertained  of  his  personal  history. 
He  was  born  at  Torre,  in  the  province  of  Estremadiira. 
In  the  early  part  of  his  life  he  fell  into  the  hands  of 
the  Algerines,  and  was  finally  released  from  captivity 
by  the  exertions  of  certain  benevolent  Italians,  who 
generously  paid  his  ransom.  He  then  established  his 
residence  in  Italy,  at  the  court  of  Leo  the  Tenth. 
Under  the  genial  influence  of  that  patronage  which 
quickened  so  many  of  the  seeds  of  genius  to  produc- 
tion in  every  department,  he  composed  his  "Pro- 
paladia,"  a  work  embracing  a  variety  of  lyrical  and 
dramatic  poetry,  first  published  at  Rome,  in  1517. 
Unfortunately,  the  caustic  satire  levelled  in  some  of 
the  higher  pieces  of  this  collection  at  the  license  of  the 
pontifical  court  brought  such  obloquy  on  the  head  of 
the  author  as  compelled  him  to  take  refuge  in  Naples, 
where  he  remained  under  the  protection  of  the  noble 
family  of  Colonna.  No  further  particulars  are  re- 
corded of  him,  except  that  he  embraced  the  ecclesias- 
tical profession ;  and  the  time  and  place  of  his  death 
are  alike  uncertain.  In  person  he  is  said  to  have  been 
comely,  with  an  amiable  disposition  and  sedate  and 
dignified  demeanor. ■♦* 

His  "  Propaladia,"  first  published  at  Rome,  passed 

ludicrous  train  of  errors  in  controverting  Cervantes,  whose  criticism 
on  the  actor  is  perpetually  misapplied  by  Andres  to  the  poet.  Velaz- 
quez seems  to  have  confounded  them  in  like  manner:  another  evidence 
of  the  extremely  superficial  acquaintance  of  the  Spanish  critics  with 
their  early  drama.  Comp.  Cervantes,  Comedias  y  Entremeses,  torn,  i., 
prologo. — Andres,  Letteratura,  torn.  v.  p.  179. — Velazquez,  Poesia  Cas- 
tellana,  p.  88. 

44  Nic.  Antonio,  Bibliotheca  Nova,  torn.  i.  p.  202. — Cervantes,  Come- 
dias, torn,  i.,  prol.  de  Nasarre. — Pellicer,  Orlgen  de  la  Comcdia,  torn.  ii. 
p.  i7.--Moratin,  Obras,  torn.  i.  p.  48. 


340 


CAST/L/A.V  LITERATURE. 


I 


through  several  editions  subsequently  in  Spain,  where 
it  was  alternately  prohibited  or  permitted,  according 
to  the  caprice  of  the  Holy  Office.  It  contains,  among 
other  things,  eight  comedies,  written  in  the  native  re- 
(iomii/las,  which  continue  to  be  regarded  as  the  suitable 
measure  for  the  drama.  They  afford  the  earliest  ex- 
ample of  the  division  miojotnadas,  or  days,  and  of  the 
intrbito,  or  prologue,  in  which  the  author,  after  pro- 
pitiating the  audience  by  suitable  compliment,  and 
witticisms  not  over-delicate,  gives  a  view  of  the  length 
and  general  scope  of  his  play.** 

The  scenes  of  Naharro's  comedies,  with  a  single  ex- 
ception, are  laid  in  Spain  and  Italy ;  those  in  the  latter 
country  probably  being  selected  with  reference  to  the 
audiences  before  whom  they  were  acted.  The  diction 
is  easy  and  correct,  without  much  affectation  of  re- 
finement or  rhetorical  ornament.  The  dialogue,  espe- 
cially in  the  lower  parts,  is  sustained  with  much  comic 
vivacity;  indeed,  Naharro  seems  to  have  had  a  nicer 
perception  of  character  as  it  is  found  in  lower  life  than 
as  it  exists  in  the  higher ;  and  more  than  one  of  his 
plays  are  devoted  exclusively  to  its  illustration.  On 
some  occasions,  however,  the  author  assumes  a  more 
elevated  tone,  and  his  verse  rises  to  a  degree  of  poetic 

45  Bartolom^  Torres  de  Naharro,  Propaladia  (Madrid,  1573). — The 
deficiency  of  the  earlier  Spanish  books,  of  which  Bouterwek  repeatedly 
complains,  has  led  him  into  an  error  respectinj;  the  "  Propaladia," 
which  he  had  never  seen.  He  states  that  Naharro  was  the  first  to  dis- 
tribute the  play  into  three  jomadas  or  acts,  and  takes  Cervantes  roundly 
to  task  for  assuming  the  original  merit  of  this  distribution  to  himself. 
•In  fact,  Naharro  did  introduce  the  division  vaXofive  jomadas,  and  Cer- 
vantes assumes  only  the  credit  of  having  been  the  first  to  reduce  them 
to  three.  Comp.  Bouterwek,  Geschichte  der  Poesie  und  Beredsamkeit, 
Band  iii.  S.  285, — and  Cervantes,  Comedias,  torn,  i.,  pr61. 


ROMANTIC  FICTION  AND  POETRY. 


241 


beauty,  deepened  by  the  moral  reflection  so  character- 
istic of  the  Spaniards.  At  other  times,  his  pieces  are 
disfigured  by  such  a  Babel-like  confusion  of  tongues  as 
makes  it  doubtful  which  may  be  the  poet's  vernacular. 
French,  Spanish,  Italian,  with  a  variety  of  barbarous 
patois  and  mongrel  Latin,  are  all  brought  into  play  at 
the  same  time,  and  all  comprehended,  apparently  with 
equal  facility,  by  each  one  of  the  dramatis  persona. 
But  it  is  difficult  to  conceive  how  such  a  jargon  could 
have  been  comprehended,  far  more  relished,  by  an 
Italian  audience.^ 

Naharro's  comedies  are  not  much  to  be  commended 
for  the  intrigue,  which  generally  excites  but  a  languid 
interest  and  shows  little  power  or  adroitness  in  the 
contrivance.  With  every  defect,  however,  they  must 
be  allowed  to  have  given  the  first  forms  to  Spanish 
comedy,  and  to  exhibit  many  of  the  features  which 
continued  to  be  characteristic  of  it  in  a  state  of  more 
perfect  development  under  Lope  de  Vega  and  Calde- 
ron.  Such,  for  instance,  is  the  amorous  jealousy,  and 
especially  the  point  of  honor,  so  conspicuous  on  the 
Spanish  theatre;  and  such,  too,  the  moral  confusion 
too  often  produced  by  blending  the  foulest  crimes  with 

<*  In  the  argument  to  the  "  Seraphina,"  he  thus  prepares  the  audi- 
ence for  this  colloquial  olla  podrida  : 

"  Mas  haveis  de  estar  alerta 
por  sentir  los  personages 
que  hablan  qiutro  leiigiiages, 
hasta  acabar  su  rehyerta 
no  sal^n  de  cuenta  cierta 
por  Latin  e  Italiano 
Castellniio  y  Valenciano 
que  ninguno  desconoierta." 

]>ro|)a1adia,  p.  5a 

Vol.  II.-I6  , 


r,-- 


242 


CASTILIAN  L  ITER  A  TURE. 


zeal  for  religion.*'  These  comedies,  moreover,  far  from 
blind  conformity  with  the  ancients,  discovered  much 
of  the  spirit  of  independence  and  deviated  into  many 
of  the  eccentricities  which  distinguish  the  national 
theatre  in  later  times,  and  which  the  criticism  of  our 
own  day  has  so  successfully  explained  and  defended  on 
philosophical  principles. 

Naharro's  plays  were  represented,  as  appears  from 
his  prologue,  in  Italy,  probably  not  at  Rome,  which 

47  The  following  is  an  example  of  the  precious  reasoning  with  which 
Floristan,  in  the  play  above  quoted,  reconciles  his  conscience  to  tlie 
murder  of  his  wife  Orfea  in  order  to  gratify  the  jealousy  of  his  mistress 
Seraphina.    Floristan  is  addressing  himself  to  a  priest : 

"  Y  por  mas  dafio  escusar 
no  lu  qiiiero  hora  hazer, 
siiio  que  es  menester. 
quo  yo  mate  luego  a  Orfea 
do  Serafiiia  lo  vea 
porque  lo  pueda  creer. 
Que  yo  bien  me  malaria 
pues  toda  razon  me  inclina ; 
pero  se  de  Serafina 
que  se  desesperaria. 
y  Orfea,  pues  que  haria? 
quando  mi  muerte  supiesse : 
que  creo  que  no  pudiesse 
sostener  la  vida  un  dia. 
Pues  hablando  aca  entre  nos 
a  Orfea  cabe  la  suerte ; 
porque  con  su  sola  muerte 
se  escusaran  otras  dos: 
'de  modo  que  padre  vos 
si  llamar  me  la  quereys, 
&  mi  merced  me  hareys 
y  tambien  servicio  a  Dios. 
•         «  •         • 

porque  si  yo  la  matare 
morira  christianamente ; 
yo  morire  penitente, 
quando  mi  suert*  lleiare.'' 

fropaladia,  fol.  AS. 


ROMANTIC  FICTION  AND  POETRY. 


243 


he  quitted  soon  after  their  publication,  but  at  Naples, 
which,  then  forming  a  part  of  the  Spanish  dominions, 
might  more  easily  furnish  an  audience  capable  of  com- 
prehending them.*  It  is  remarkable  that,  notwith- 
standing their  repeated  editions  in  Spain,  they  do  not 
appear  to  have  ever  been  performed  there.  The  cause 
of  this,  probably,  was  the  low  state  of  the  histrionic 
art,  and  the  total  deficiency  in  theatrical  costume  and 
decoration  ;  yet  it  was  not  easy  to  dispense  with  these 
in  the  representation  of  pieces  which  brought  more 
than  a  score  of  persons  occasionally,  and  these  crowned 
heads,  at  the  same  time,  upon  the  stage.* 

Some  conception  may  be  afforded  of  the  lamentable 
poverty  of  the  theatrical  equipment  from  the  account 
given  by  Cervantes  of  its  condition  half  a  century 
later.  **The  whole  wardrobe  of  a  manager  of  the 
theatre  at  that  time,"  says  he,  "was  contained  in 
a  single  sack,  and  amounted  only  to  four  dresses  of 
white  fur  trimmed  with  gilt  leather,  four  beards,  four 
wigs,  and  four  crooks,  more  or  less.  There  were  no 
trap-doors,  movable  clouds,  or  machinery  of  any  kind. 

^  Signorelli  waxes  exceedingly  wroth  with  Don  Bias  Nasarre  for  the 
assertion  that  Naharro  first  taught  the  Italians  to  write  comedy,  taxing 
him  with  downright  mendacity;  Bid  he  stoutly  denies  the  probability 
of  Naharro's  comedies  ever  having  been  performed  on  the  Italian 
boards.  The  critic  seems  to  be  in  the  right,  as  far  as  regards  the  in- 
fluence of  the  Spanish  dramatist ;  but  he  might  have  been  spared  all 
doubts  respecting  their  representation  in  the  country,  had  he  consulted 
the  prologue  of  Naharro  himself,  where  he  asserts  the  fact  m  the  most 
explicit  manner.  Comp.  Propaladia,  prol.,  and  Signorelli,  Storia  critica 
de"  Teatri,  torn.  vi.  pp.  171-179. — See  also  Moratin,  Origenes,  Obras, 
torn.  i.  pp.  149,  150. 

<9  Propaladia ;  see  the  comedies  of  "  Trofea"  and  "  Tinelaria." — 
Jovellanos,  Memoria  sobre  las  Diversiones  piiblicas,  apud  Mem.  de  lit 
Acad,  de  Hist.,  torn.  v. 


f 


244 


CASTILIAX  LITERATURE. 


I 


1! 


The  stage  itself  consisted  only  of  four  or  six  planks, 
placed  across  as  many  benches,  arranged  in  the  form 
of  a  square,  and  elevated  but  four  palms  from  the 
ground.  The  only  decoration  of  the  theatre  was  an 
old  coverlet,  drawn  from  side  to  side  by  cords,  behind 
which  the  musicians  sang  some  ancient  romance^  with- 
out the  guitar."  s"  In  fact,  no  further  apparatus  was 
employed  than  that  demanded  for  the  exhibition  of 
mysteries,  or  the  pastoral  dialogues  which  succeeded 
them.  The  Spaniards,  notwithstanding  their  precocity, 
compared  with  most  of  the  nations  of  Europe,  in  dra- 
matic art,  were  unaccountably  tardy  in  all  its  histri- 
onic accompaniments.  The  public  remained  content 
with  such  poor  mummeries  as  could  be  got  up  by  stroll- 
ing players  and  mountebanks.  There  was  no  fixed 
theatre  in  Madrid  until  the  latter  part  of  the  sixteenth 
century;  and  that  consisted  of  a  courtyard,  with  only 
a  roof  to  shelter  it,  while  the  spectators  sat  on  benches 
ranged  around,  or  at  the  windows  of  the  surrounding 
houses.  5' 

A  similar  impulse  with  that  experienced  by  comic 
writing  was  given  to  tragedy.  The  first  that  entered  on 
this  department  were  professed  scholars,  who  adopted 
the  error  of  the  Italian  dramatists,  in  fashioning  their 
pieces  servilely  after  the  antique,  instead  of  seizing  the 
expression  of  their  own  age.  The  most  conspicuous 
attempts  in  this  way  were  made  by  Fernan  Perez  dc 
Oliva.5'     He  was  born  at  Cordova,  in  1494,  and,  aftei 

50  Cervantes,  Comeclias,  torn,  i.,  prol. 

5'  Pcllicer,  Orlgen  de  la  Comedia,  torn.  ii.  pp.  58-62. — See  also 
American  Quarterly  Review,  no.  viii.  art.  3. 

5a  Oliva,  Ohras  (Madrid,  1787). — VasCo  Diaz  Tanco,  a  native  of 
Estremadnra,  who  flourished  in  the  first  half  of  the  sixteenth  century, 


ROMA  ATTIC  FICTION'  AND  POETRY. 


245 


many  years  passed  in  the  various  schools  of  S,).iin, 
France,  and  Italy,  returned  to  his  native  land,  and  be- 
came a  lecturer  in  the  university  of  Salamanca.  He 
instructed  in  moral  philosophy  and  mathematics,  and 
established  the  highest  reputation  for  his  critical  ac- 
quaintance with  the  ancient  languages  and  his  own. 
He  died  young,  at  the  age  of  thirty-nine,  deeply  la- 
mented for  his  moral  no  less  than  for  his  intellectual 
worth.  S3 

His  various  works  were  published  by  the  learned 
Morales,  his  nephew,  some  fifty  years  after  his  death. 
Among  them  are  translations  in  prose  of  ths  Electra 
of  Sophocles,  and  the  Hecuba  of  Euripides.  They 
may  with  more  propriety  be  termed  imitations,  and 
those  too  of  the  freest  kind.  Although  they  conform, 
in  the  general  arrangement  and  progress  of  the  story, 
to  their  originals,  yet  characters,  nay,  whole  scenes 
and  dialogues,  are  occasionally  omitted ;  and  in  those 
retained  it  is  not  always  easy  to  recognize  the  hand  of 
the  Grecian  artist,  whose  moci.;st  beauties  are  tl.  own 

mentions  in  one  of  his  works  'iiree  I'U',  lies  ocMposed  'a  liimsclf  on 
Scripture  subjects.  As  there  is  no  e'.  A',en  ;»:,  h.v  -y^'X,  of  •)  eir  having 
been  printed,  or  performed,  o''  nvo'i  read  in  itiimiscript  by  any  one, 
they  hardly  deserve  to  be  inc.'  ideti  in  the  catalr  ^iie  of  dramatic  com- 
positions. (Moratin,  Obras.  tori.  1.  ;,p.  x^o,  i>i. — Laitv^illas,  Lettera- 
tura  Spagnuola,  torn.  v.  dis.  i,  sec.  '■.)  This  patriuti-:  litterateur 
endeavors  to  establish  the  production,  of  Oliva's  trajjcdiod  in  the  year 
1515,  in  the  hope  of  antedating  that  of  Trissino's  "  Sophonisba,"  com- 
posed a  year  later,  and  thus  serur  n ,a;  to  his  nation  the  palm  of  prece- 
dence, in  time  at  least,  though  it  iiiould  be  only  for  a  few  months,  on 
the  tragic  theatre  of  modern  Europe.  Letter, it  um  Spagnuola,  ubi 
supra. 

S3  Nic.  Antonio,  fSibliotheca  Nova    torn.  i.  p.  386. — -Oliva,  Obras, 
pref.  de  Morales. 


ii 


r 


246 


CASTILIAN  LITERATURE. 


n 


into  shade  by  the  ambitions  ones  of  his  imitator.** 
But,  with  all  this,  Oliva's  tragedies  must  be  admitted 
to  be  executed,  on  the  whole,  with  vigor;  and  the 
diction,  notwithstanding  the  national  tendency  to  ex- 
aggeration above  alluded  to,  may  be  generally  com- 
mended for  decorum,  and  an  imposing  dignity  quite 
worthy  of  the  tragic  drama;  indeed,  they  may  be 
selected  as  affording  probably  the  best  specimen  of 
the  progress  of  prose  composition  during  the  present 
reign. 55 

Oliva's  reputation  led  to  a  similar  imitation  of  the 
antique.  But  the  Spaniards  were  too  national  in  all 
their  tastes  to  sanction  it.  These  classical  composi- 
tions did  not  obtain  possession  of  the  stage,  but  were 
confined  to  the  closet,  serving  only  as  a  relaxation  for 
the  man  of  letters;  while  the  voice  of  the  people 
compelled  all  who  courted  it  to  accommodate  their 
inventions  to  those  romantic  forms  which  were  subse- 
quently developed  in  such  variety  of  beauty  by  the  great 
Spanish  dramatists.  5* 

54  The  following  passage,  for  example,  in  the  "  Vengaza  de  Agamem- 
non," imitated  from  the  Electra  of  Sophocles,  will  hardly  be  charged 
on  the  Greek  dramatist:  "  Habed,  yo  os  niego,  de  mi  compassion,  no 
querais  atapar  con  vuestros  consejos  los  respiraderos  de  las  hornazas 
de  fuego,  que  dentro  me  atormentan."    See  Oliva,  Obras,  p.  185. 

55  Compare  the  diction  of  these  tragedies  -vith  that  of  the  "  Centon 
epistolario,"  for  instance,  esteemed  one  cf  the  best  literary  composi- 
tions of  John  II.'s  reign,  and  see  the  advance  made,  not  only  in  or- 
thography, but  in  the  verbal  arrangement  generally,  and  the  whole 
complexion  of  the  style. 

56  Nof '.vithstanding  some  Spanish  critics,  as  Cueva,  for  example,  have 
vindicated  the  romantic  forms  of  the  drama  on  scientific  principles,  it 
is  apparent  that  the  most  successful  writers  in  this  department  have 
been  constrained  to  adopt  them  by  public  opinion,  rather  than  their 


ROMANTIC  FICTION  AND  POETRY. 


247 


We  have  now  surveyed  the  different  kinds  of  poetic 
culture  familiar  to  Spain  under  Ferdinand  and  Isabella. 
Their  most  conspicuous  element  is  the  national  spirit 
which  pervades  them,  and  the  exclusive  attachment 
which  they  manifest  to  the  primitive  forms  of  versifi- 
cation peculiar  to  the  Peninsula.  The  most  remarkable 
portion  of  this  body  of  poetry  may  doubtless  be  con- 
sidered the  Spanish  romances,  or  ballads ;  that  popular 
minstrelsy  which,  commemorating  the  picturesque  and 
chivalrous  incidents  of  the  age,  reflects  most  faithfully 
the  romantic  genius  of  the  people  who  gave  it  utter- 
ance. The  lyric  efforts  of  the  period  were  less  success- 
ful. There  were  few  elaborate  attempts  in  this  field, 
indeed,  by  men  of  decided  genius.  But  the  great 
obstacle  may  be  found  in  the  imperfection  of  the 
language  and  the  deficiency  of  the  more  exact  and 
finished  metrical  forms  indispensable  to  high  poetic 
execution. 

The  whole  period,  however,  comprehending,  as  it 
does,  the  first  decided  approaches  to  a  regular  drama, 
may  be  regarded  as  very  important  in  a  literary  aspect; 
since  it  exhibits  the  indigenous  peculiarities  of  Castil- 
ian  literature  in  all  their  freshness,  and  shows  to  what 
a  degree  of  excellence  it  could  attain,  while  untouched 
by  any  foreign  influence.  The  present  reign  may  be 
regaided  as  the  epoch  which  divides  the  ancient  from 
the  modern  school  of  Spanish  poetry;  in  which  the 

own,  which  would  have  suggested  a  nearer  imitation  of  the  classical 
models  of  antiquity,  the  practice  so  generally  followed  by  the  Italians, 
and  one  which  naturally  recommends  itself  to  the  scholar.  See  'he 
canon's  discourse  in  Cervantes,  Don  Quixote,  ed.  de  Pellicer,  tom.  iii. 
pp.  207-220, — and,  more  explicitly.  Lope  de  Vega,  Obras  sueltas,  tom. 
iv.  p.  406. 


248 


CASTILIAN  LITERATURE. 


language  was  slowly  but  steadily  undergoing  the  process 
of  refinement,  that  "made  the  knowledge  of  it,"  to 
borrow  the  words  of  a  contemporary  critic,  **  pass  for 
an  elegant  accomplishment,  even  with  the  cavaliers  and 
dames  of  cultivated  Italy;" s?  and  which  finally  gave 
full  scope  to  the  poetic  talent  that  raised  the  literature 
of  the  country  to  such  brilliant  heights  in  the  sixteenth 
century. 

57  "  Ya  en  Italia,  assi  entre  Damas,  come  f»ntre  Caballeros,  se  tiene 
por  gentileza  y  galania,  saber  hablar  Castellano."  Dillogo  de  las  Len- 
guas,  apud  Mayans  y  Siscar,  Origenes,  torn.  ii.  p.  4, 


I  have  had  occasion  la  advert  more  than  once  in  the  course  of  this 
chapter  to  the  superficial  acquaintance  of  the  Spanish  critics  with  the 
early  history  of  their  own  drama,  authentic  materials  for  which  are  so 
extremely  rare  and  difficult  of  access  as  to  preclude  the  expectation  of 
any  thing  like  a  satisfactory  account  of  it  out  of  the  Peninsula.  The 
nearest  approach  to  tliis  within  my  knowledge  is  made  in  an  article  in 
the  eighth  number  of  the  American  Quarterly  Review,  ascribed  to  Mr. 
Ticknor,  late  Professor  of  Modern  Literature  in  Harvard  University. 
This  p/'Ptleman,  during  a  residence  in  the  Peninsula,  had  every  facility 
for  voplonishing  his  library  with  the  ir  ost  curious  and  valuable  works, 
both  printed  and  manuscript,  in  this  department ;  and  his  essay  em- 
bodies in  a  brief  comp;iss  the  results  of  a  well-directed  industry,  which 
he  has  expanded  in  greater  detail  in  his  lectures  on  Spanish  literature, 
delivered  before  the  classes  of  the  University.  The  subject  is  discussed 
with  his  usua!  el'^ganre  and  perspicuity  of  style;  and  the  foreign,  and 
indeed  Castihan,  scholar  mny  find  much  novel  information  there,  in 
the  views  presumed  of  tlie  early  ^ :. ■;Tress  of  the  dramatic  and  the  his- 
trionic art  in  t'le  Peninsula. 

Since  the  publication  of  this  article,  Moratin's  treatise,  so  long  and 
anxiously  expected,  "  Grigenes  del  Teatro  Espanol,"  has  made  its  ap- 
pearance under  the  auspices  of  the  Royal  Academy  of  History,  which 
has  enriched  the  national  literature  with  so  many  admirable  editions 


ROMANTIC  FICTION  AND   POETRY. 


249 


of  its  ancient  authors.  Moratin  states  in  his  Preface  that  he  was  em- 
ployed from  his  earliest  youth  in  collecting  notices,  both  at  home  and 
abroad,  of  whatever  might  illustrate  the  origin  of  the  Spanish  drama. 
The  results  haVe  been  two  volumes,  containing  in  the  First  Part  an 
historical  discussion,  with  ample  explanatory  notes,  and  a  catalogue 
of  dramatic  pieces  from  the  earliest  epoch  down  to  the  time  of  Lope 
de  Vega,  chronologically  arranged,  and  accompanied  with  critical 
analyses,  and  copious  illustrative  extracts  from  pieces  of  the  greatest 
merit.  The  Second  Part  is  devoted  to  the  publication  of  entire  pieces 
of  various  authors,  which  from  their  extreme  rarity,  or  their  existence 
only  in  manuscript,  hnve  had  but  little  circulation.  The  selections 
throughout  are  made  with  that  careful  discrimination  which  resulted 
from  poetic  talent  combined  with  extensive  and  thorough  erudition. 
The  criticisms,  although  sometimes  warped  by  the  peculiar  dramatic 
principles  of  the  author,  are  conducted  in  general  with  great  fairness ; 
and  ample,  but  not  extravagant,  commendation  is  bestowed  on  pro- 
ductions whose  merit,  to  be  properly  appreciated,  must  be  weighed  by 
one  conversant  with  the  character  and  intellectual  culture  of  Jhe  period. 
The  work,  unfortunately,  did  not  receive  the  last  touches  of  its  author, 
and  undoubtedly  something  may  be  found  wanting  to  the  full  comple- 
tion of  his  design.  On  the  whole,  it  must  be  considered  as  a  rich 
repertory  of  old  Castilian  literature,  much  of  it  of  the  most  rare  nd 
recondite  nature,  directed  to  the  illustration  of  a  department  that  has 
hitherto  been  suffered  to  languish  in  the  lowest  obscurity,  but  which 
is  imw  HO  .iiraiiged  that  it  may  be  contemplated,  as  it  were,  under  one 
aspect,  and  its  real  merits  accurately  determined. 

It  was  not  till  some  time  after  the  publication  of  this  History  that 
my  attention  was  called  to  that  portion  of  the  writings  of  Don  Martinez 
de  la  Rosa  in  which  he  criticises  the  various  departments  of  the  national 
literature.  This  criticism  is  embodied  in  the  annotations  and  appendix 
to  his  elegant  "  Poetica"  (Obras  literarias  (Paris,  1827),  tom.  i.  ii.).  The 
former  discuss  the  general  laws  by  which  the  various  kinds  of  poetry 
are  to  be  regulated  ;  the  latter  presents  a  very  searching  and  scientific 
analysis  of  the  principal  productions  of  the  Spanish  poets,  down  to  the 
close  of  the  last  century.  The  critic  exemplifies  his  own  views  by 
copious  extracts  from  the  subjects  of  his  criticism,  and  throws  much 
collateral  light  on  the  argument  by  illustrations  borrowed  from  foreign 
literature.  In  the  examination  of  the  Spanish  drama,  especially  comedy, 
which  he  modestly  qualifies  as  a  "succinct  notice,  not  very  exact," 
he  is  very  elaborate,  and  discovers  the  same  taste  and  sagacity  in  esti- 


2SO 


CASTILIAN  LITERATURE. 


mating  the  merits  of  individual  writers  which  he  had  shown  in  dis- 
cussing the  general  principles  of  the  art.  Had  I  read  his  work  sooner, 
it  would  have  greatly  facilitated  my  own  inquiries  in  the  same  obscure 
path ;  and  I  should  have  recognized  at  least  one  brilliant  exception  to 
my  sweeping  remark  on  the  apathy  manifested  by  the  Castilian  scbolan 
to  the  antiquities  of  the  national  drama. 


,H 


PART    SECOND. 

1493-1517- 

The  period  when,  the  interior  organization  of  the  mon- 
archy HAVING  been  completed,  THE  SPANISH  NATION 
ENTERED  ON  ITS  SCHEMES  OF  DISCOVERY  AND  CONQUEST; 
OR  THE  PERIOD  ILLUSTRATING  MORE  PARTICULARLY  THE 
FOREIGN  POLICY  OF  FERDINAND  AND  ISABELLA. 


(*Si) 


CHAPTER    I. 

ITALIAN   WARS. — GENERAL  VIEW  OF  EUROPE. — INVASION 
OF  ITALY  BY  CHARI  VIII.  OF  FRANCE. 


'     •■ 


I493-I495. 

Europe  at  the  Close  of  the  Fifteenth  Century. — More  intimate  Rela- 
tions between  States. — Italy  the  School  of  Politics. — Pretensions  of 
Charles  VIII.  to  Naples. — Treaty  of  Barcelona. — The  French  in- 
vade Naples. — Ferdinand's  Dissatisfaction. — Tactics  and  Arms  of 
the  different  Nations. — Preparations  of  Spain. — Mission  to  Charles 
VIII.— Bold  Conduct  of  the  Envoys. — The  French  enter  Naples. 

We  have  now  reached  that  memorable  epoch  when 
the  different  nations  of  Europe,  surmounting  the  bar- 
riers which  had  hitherto  confined  them  within  their 
respective  limits,  brought  their  forces,  as  if  by  a  simul- 
taneous impulse,  against  each  other  on  a  common  the- 
atre of  action.  In  the  preceding  part  of  this  work,  we 
have  seen  in  what  manner  Spain  was  prepared  for  the 
contest,  by  the  concentration  of  her  various  states 
under  one  government,  and  by  such  internal  reforms 
as  enabled  the  government  to  act  with  vigor.  The 
genius  of  Ferdinand  will  appear  as  predominant  in 
what  concerns  the  foreign  relations  of  the  country  as 
did  that  of  Isabella  in  its  interior  administration  ;  so 
much  so,  indeed,  that  the  accurate  and  well-informed 
historian  who  has  most  copiously  illustrated  this  por- 
tion of  the  national  annals  does  not  even  mention,  in 

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254 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


his  introductory  notice,  the  name  of  Isabella,  but  refers 
the  agency  in  these  events  exclusively  to  her  more 
ambitious  consort.*  In  this  he  is  abundantly  justified, 
both  by  the  prevailing  character  of  the  policy  pursued, 
widely  differing  from  that  which  distinguished  the 
queen's  measures,  and  by  the  circumstance  that  the 
foreign  conquests,  althongh  achieved  by  the  united 
efforts  of  both  crowns,  were  undertaken  on  behalf  of 
Ferdinand's  own  dominions  of  Aragon,  to  which  in 
the  end  they  exclusively  appertained. 

The  close  of  the  fifteenth  century  presents,  on  the 
whole,  the  most  striking  point  of  view  in  modern  his- 
tory; one  from  which  we  may  contemplate  the  con- 
summation of  an  important  revolution  in  the 'structure 
of  political  society,  and  the  first  application  of  several 
inventions  destined  to  exercise  the  widest  influence  on 
human  civilization.  The  feudal  institutions,  or  rather 
the  feudal  principle,  which  operated  even  where  the 
institutions,  strictly  speaking,  did  not  exist,  after  hav- 
ing wrought  its  appointed  uses,  had  gradually  fallen 
into  decay;  for  it  had  not  the  power  of  accommo- 
dating itself  to  the  increased  demands  and  improved 
condition  of  society.  However  well  suited  to  a  bar- 
barous age,  it  was  found  that  the  distribution  of  power 
among  the  members  of  an  independent  aristocracy  was 
unfavorable  to  that  degree  of  personal  security  and 
tranquillity  which  is  indispensable  to  great  proficiency 
in  the  higher  arts  of  civilization.  It  was  equally  repug- 
nant to  the  principle  of  patriotism,  which  is  so  essential 
to  national  independence,  but  which  must  have  operated 

*  Zurita,  Historia  del  Rey  Don  Hernando  el  Cath61ico  (Anales,  lom. 
V.  vi.,  Zaragoza,  1580),  lib.  i,  introd. 


EXPEDITION  OF  CHARLES   VIII. 


255 


feebly  among  a  people  whose  sympathies,  instead  of 
being  concentrated  on  the  state,  were  claimed  by  a 
hundred  masters,  as  was  the  case  in  every  feudal  commu- 
nity. The  conviction  of  this  reconciled  the  nation  to 
the  transfer  of  authority  into  other  hands ;  not  those  of 
the  people,  indeed,  who  were  too  ignorant,  and  too 
long  accustomed  to  a  subordinate,  dependent  situation, 
to  admit  of  it, — but  into  the  hands  of  the  sovereign. 
It  was  not  until  three  centuries  more  had  elapsed  that 
the  condition  of  the  great  mass  of  the  people  was  to  be 
so  far  improved  as  to  qualify  them  for  asserting  and 
maintaining  the  political  consideration  which  of  right 
belongs  to  them. 

In  whatever  degree  public  opinion  and  the  progress 
of  events  might  favor  the  transition  of  power  from  the 
aristocracy  to  the  monarch,  it  is  obvious  that  much 
would  depend  on  his  personal  character ;  since  the  ad- 
vantages of  his  station  alone  made  him  by  no  means  a 
match  for  the  combined  forces  of  his  great  nobility. 
The  remarkable  adaptation  of  the  characters  of  the 
principal  sovereigns  of  Europe  to  this  exigency,  in  the 
latter  half  of  the  fifteenth  century,  would  seem  to  have 
had  something  providential  in  it.  Henry  the  Seventh 
of  England,  Louis  the  Eleventh  of  France,  Ferdinand 
of  Naples,  John  the  Second  of  Aragon  and  his  son  Fer- 
dinand, and  John  the  Second  of  Portugal,  however 
different  in  other  respects,  were  all  distinguished  by  a 
sagacity  which  enabled  them  to  devise  the  most  subtile 
and  comprehensive  schemes  of  policy,  and  which 
was  prolific  in  expedients  for  the  circumvention  of 
enemies  too  potent  to  be  encountered  by  open  force. 

Their  operations,  all  directed  towards  the  same  point. 


2s6 


ITALJAN  WARS, 


were  attended  with  similar  success,  resulting  in  the  ex- 
altation of  the  royal  prerogative  at  the  expense  of  the 
aristocracy,  with  more  or  less  deference  to  the  rights 
of  the  people,  as  the  case  might  be ;  in  France,  for 
example,  with  almost  total  indifference  to  them,  while 
in  Spain  they  were  regarded,  under  the  parental  ad- 
ministration of  Isabella,  which  tempered  the  less  scru- 
pulous policy  of  her  husband,  with  tenderness  and 
respect.  In  every  country,  however,  the  nation  at 
large  gained  greatly  by  the  revolution,  which  came  on 
insensibly,  at  least  without  any  violent  shock  to  the 
fabric  of  society,  and  which,  by  securing  internal  tran- 
quillity and  the  ascendency  of  law  over  brute  force, 
gave  ample  scope  for  those  intellectual  pursuits  that 
withdraw  mankind  from  sensual  indulgence  and  too 
exclusive  devotion  to  the  animal  wants  of  our  nature. 

No  sooner  was  the  internal  organization  of  the  dif- 
ferent nations  of  Europe  placed  on  a  secure  basis,  than 
they  found  leisure  to  direct  their  views,  hitherto  con- 
fined within  their  own  limits,  to  a  bolder  and  more 
distant  sphere  of  action.  Their  international  commu- 
nication was  greatly  facilitated  by  several  useful  inven- 
tions coincident  with  this  period,  or  then  first  exten- 
sively applied.  Such  was  the  art  of  printing,  diffusing 
knowledge  with  the  speed  and  universality  of  light ; 
the  establishment  of  posts,  which,  adopted  by  Louis 
the  Eleventh  in  the  fifteenth  century,  came  into  fre- 
quent use  in  the  beginning  of  the  sixteenth;*  and 


•  [The  postal  system  as  a  means  of  "  international  communication" 
can  scarcely  be  said  to  have  existed  before  the  seventeenth  century. 
The  posts  established  by  Louis  XI.  were  merely  relays  of  horses  for 
the  conveyance  of  government  messengers. — Ed.J 


EXPEDITION  OF  CHARLES    VIII. 


257 


lastly,  the  compass,  which,  guiding  the  mariner  un- 
erringly through  the  trackless  wastes  of  the  ocean, 
brought  the  remotest  regions  into  contact.  With 
these  increased  facilities  for  intercommunication,  the 
different  European  states  might  be  said  to  be  brought 
into  as  intimate  relation  with  one  another  as  the  differ- 
ent provinces  of  the  same  kingdom  were  before.  They 
now  for  the  first  time  regarded  each  other  as  members 
of  one  great  community,  in  whose  action  they  were  all 
mutually  concerned.  A  greater  anxiety  was  manifested 
to  detect  the  springs  of  every  political  movement  of 
their  neighbors.  Missions  became  frequent,  and  ac- 
credited agents  were  stationed,  as  a  sort  of  honorable 
spies,  at  the  different  courts.  The  science  of  diplo- 
macy, on  narrower  grounds,  indeed,  than  those  on 
which  it  is  now  practised,  began  to  be  studied.' 
Schemes  of  aggression  and  resistance,  leading  to 
political  combinations  the  most  complex  and  extended, 
were  gradually  formed.  We  are  not  to  imagine,  how- 
ever, the  existence  of  any  well-defined  ideas  of  a 
balance  of  power  at  this  early  period.  The  object  of 
these  combinations  was  some  positive  act  of  aggression 
or  resistance,  for  purposes  of  conquest  or  defence,  not 
for  the  maintenance  of  any  abstract  theory  of  political 


I 


I 
I 


•  The  "  Legazione,"  or  official  correspondence  of  Machiavelli  while 
stationed  at  the  different  European  courts,  may  be  regarded  as  the 
most  complete  manual  of  diplomacy  as  it  existed  at  the  beginning  of 
the  sixteenth  century.  It  affords  more  copious  and  curious  informa- 
tion respecting  the  interior  workings  of  the  governments  with  which  he 
resided  than  is  to  be  found  in  any  regular  history ;  and  it  shows  the 
variety  and  extent  of  duties  attached  to  the  office  of  resident  ministei 
fron'  the  first  moment  of  its  creation. 

Vol.  II.— 17 


ass 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


equilibrium.  This  was  the  result  of  much  deeper  re- 
flection, and  of  prolonged  experience. 

The  management  of  the  foreign  relations  of  the 
nation  at  the  close  of  the  fifteenth  century  was  resigned 
wholly  to  the  sovereign.  The  people  took  no  further 
part  or  interest  in  the  matter  than  if  it  had  concerned 
only  the  disposition  of  his  private  property.  His 
measures  were,  therefore,  often  characterized  by  a  de- 
gree of  temerity  and  precipitation  that  could  not  have 
been  permitted  under  the  salutary  checks  afforded  by 
popular  interposition.  A  strange  insensibility,  indeed, 
was  shown  to  the  rights  and  interests  of  the  nation. 
War  was  regarded  as  a  game,  in  which  the  sovereign 
parties  engaged,  not  on  behalf  of  their  subjects,  but 
exclusively  on  their  own.  Like  desperate  gamblers, 
they  contended  for  the  spoils  or  the  honors  of  victory 
with  so  much  the  more  recklessness  as  their  own  station 
was  too  elevated  to  be  materially  prejudiced  by  the 
results.  They  contended  with  all  the  animosity  of  per- 
sonal feeling;  every  device,  however  paltry,  was  resorted 
to ;  and  no  advantage  was  deemed  unwarrantable  which 
could  tend  to  secure  the  victory.  The  most  profligate 
maxims  of  state  policy  were  openly  avowed  by  men  of 
reputed  honor  and  integrity.  In  short,  the  diplomacy 
of  that  day  is  very  generally  characterized  by  a  low 
cunning,  subterfuge,  and  petty  trickery  which  would 
leave  an  indelible  stain  on  the  transactions  of  private 
individuals. 

Italy  was,  doubtless,  the  great  school  where  this  po- 
litical morality  was  taught.  That  country  was  broken 
up  into  a  number  of  small  states,  too  nearly  equal  to 
allow  the  absolute  supremacy  of  any  one,  while  at  the 


EXPEDITION  OF  CHARLES   VIIL 


259 


same  time  it  demanded  the  most  restless  vigilance  on 
the  part  of  each  to  maintain  its  independence  against 
its  neighbors.  Hence  such  a  complexity  of  intrigues 
and  combinations  as  the  world  had  never  before  wit- 
nessed. A  subtile,  refined  policy  was  conformable  to 
the  genius  of  the  Italians.  It  was  partly  the  result, 
moreover,  of  their  higher  cultivation,  which  naturally 
led  them  to  trust  the  settlement  of  their  disputes  to 
superior  intellectual  dexterity,  rather  than  to  brute 
force,  like  the  barbarians  beyond  the  Alps.'  From 
these  and  other  causes,  maxims  were  gradually  estab- 
lished so  monstrous  in  their  nature  as  to  give  the  work 
which  first  embodied  them  in  a  regular  system  the  air 
of  a  satire  rather  than  a  serious  performance,  while  the 
name  of  its  author  has  been  converted  into  a  by-word 
for  political  knavery.* 

At  the  period  before  us,  the  principal  states  of  Italy 
were  the  republics  of  Venice  and  Florence,  the  duchy 
of  Milan,  the  papal  see,  and  the  kingdom  of  Naples. 
The  others  may  be  regarded  merely  as  satellites,  re- 
volving round  some  one  or  other  of  these  superior 

3  "  Sed  diu,"  says  Sallust,  noticing  the  similar  consequence  of  in- 
creased refinement  among  the  ancients,  "  magnum  inter  mortales 
certamen  fuit,  vine  corporis  an  virtute  animi  res  militaris  magis  pro- 
cederet.  .  .  .  Turn  demum  periculo  atque  negotiis  compertum  est,  in 
bello  plurimum  ingenium  posse."     Bellum  Catilinarium,  cap.  i,  2. 

4  Machiavelli's  political  treatises,  his  "  Principe"  and  "  Discorsi  sopra 
Tito  Livio,"  which  appeared  after  his  death,  excited  no  scandal  at  the 
time  of  their  publication.  They  came  into  the  world,  indeed,  from  the 
pontifical  press,  under  the  privilege  of  the  reigning  pope,  Clement  VII. 
It  was  not  until  thirty  years  later  that  they  were  placed  in  the  Index ; 
and  this  not  from  any  exceptions  taken  to  the  immorality  of  their  doc- 
trines, as  Ginguen^  has  well  proved  (Histoire  litt^raire  d' Italic  (Paris. 
1811-19),  tom.  viii.  pp.  32,  74),  but  firom  the  imputations  they  con- 
tained on  the  court  of  Rome. 


26o 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


powers,  by  whom  their  respective  movements  were 
regulated  and  controlled.  Venice  may  be  considered 
as  the  most  formidable  of  the  Italian  powers,  taking 
into  consideration  her  wealth,  her  powerful  navy,  her 
territory  in  the  north,  and  her  princely  colonial  domain. 
There  was  no  government  in  that  age  which  attracted 
such  general  admiration,  both  from  natives  and  for- 
eigners, who  seem  to  have  looked  upon  it  as  afford- 
ing the  very  best  model  of  political  wisdom.'  Yet 
there  was  no  country  where  the  citizen  enjoyed  less 
positive  freedom ;  none  whose  foreign  relations  were 
conducted  with  more  absolute  selfishness,  and  with  a 
more  narrow,  bargaining  spirit,  savoring  rather  of  a 
company  of  traders  than  of  a  great  and  powerful  state. 
But  all  this  was  compensated,  in  the  eyes  of  her  contem- 
poraries, by  the  stability  of  her  institutions,  which  still 
remained  unshaken  amidst  revolutions  which  had  con- 
vulsed or  overturned  every  other  social  fabric  in  Italy.* 

5  "  Aquel  Senado  i  Senoria  de  Venecianos,"  says  Gonzalo  de  Oviedo, 
"  donde  me  parece  d  mi  que  esta  rccogido  todo  el  saber  i  prudencia  de 
los  hombres  humanos;  porque  ^s  la  gente  del  mundo  que  mejor  se 
sabe  gobernar ;  i  la  republica,  que  mas  tiempo  hd  durado  en  el  mundo 
por  la  buena  forma  de  su  regimiento,  i  donde  con  mejor  manera  hdn 
los  hombres  vlvido  en  comunidad  sin  tener  Rey;"  etc.  Quincuagenas, 
MS.,  bat.  I,  quinc,  3,  dial.  44. 

6  Of  all  the  incense  which  poets  and  politicians  have  offered  to  the 
Queen  of  the  Adriatic,  none  is  more  exquisite  than  that  conveyed  in 
these  few  lines,  where  Sannazaro  notices  her  position  as  the  bulwark 
of  Christendom : 

"  Una  Italum  regina,  altaa  puklierrima  Romas 
^nitila,  qiix  terris,  qux  doniinaris  aquis  I 
I'u  tibi  vel  reges  cive.s  facis  ;  O  decus  !  O  lux 

Ausoniae,  per  quam  libera  turba  sumus  ; 
Per  quam  barbaries  nobis  non  iinperat,  et  Sol 
Jslxoriens  nostro  clarius  orbe  micat  I" 

Opera  Latiiia,  lib.  3,  eleg.  i,  95. 


EXPEDITION  OF  CHARLES   VIII 


2bt 


The  government  of  Milan  was  at  this  time  under  the 
direction  of  Lodovico  Sforza,  or  Lodovico  the  Moor, 
as  he  is  commonly  called ;  an  epithet  suggested  by 
his  complexion,  but  one  which  he  willingly  retained, 
as  indicating  the  superior  craftiness  on  which  he 
valued  himself.'  He  held  the  reins  in  the  name  of 
his  nephew,  then  a  minor,  until  a  convenient  season 
should  arrive  for  assuming  them  in  his  own.  His 
cool,  perfidious  character  was  stained  with  the  worst 
vices  of  the  most  profligate  class  of  Italian  statesmen 
of  that  period. 

The  central  parts  of  Italy  were  occupied  by  the  re- 
public of  Florence,  which  had  ever  been  the  rallying- 
point  of  the  friends  of  freedom,  too  often  of  faction, 
but  which  had  now  resigned  itself  to  the  dominion  of 
the  Medici,  whose  cultivated  tastes  and  munificent 
patronage  shed  a  splendid  illusion  over  their  adminis- 
tration, which  blinded  the  eyes  of  contemporaries,  and 
even  of  posterity. 

The  papal  chair  was  filled  by  Alexander  the  Sixth,  a 
pontiff  whose  licentiousness,  avarice,  and  unblushing 
effrontery  have  been  the  theme  of  unmiiig!_d  reproach 
with  Catholic  as  well  as  Protestant  writers.  His  prefer- 
ment was  effected  by  lavish  bribery,  and  by  his  consum- 
mate address,  as  well  as  energy  of  character.  Although 
a  native  Spaniard,  his  election  was  extremely  unpal- 
atable to  Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  who  deprecated  the 
scandal  it  must  bring  upon  the  church,  and  who  had 
little  to  hope  for  themselves,  in  a  political  view,  from 
the  elevation  of  one  of  their  own  subjects  even,  whose 


7  Guicciardini,  Istoria,  torn.  i.  lib.  3,  p.  147. 


a63 


ITALIAN  WARS, 


mercenary  spirit  placed  him  at   the  control  of  the 
highest  bidder." 

The  Neapolitan  sceptre  was  swayed  by  Ferdinand 
the  First,  whose  father,  Alfonso  the  Fifth,  the  uncle  of 
Ferdinand  of  Aragon,  had  obtained  the  crown  by  the 
adoption  of  Joanna  of  Naples,  or  rather  by  his  own 
good  sword.  Alfonso  settled  his  conquest  on  his  ille* 
gitimate  son  Ferdinand,  to  the  prejudice  of  the  rights  ot 
Aragon,  by  whose  blood  and  treasure  he  had  achieved 
it.  Ferdinand's  character,  the  very  opposite  of  his 
noble  father's,  was  dark,  wily,  and  ferocious.  His  life 
was  spent  in  conflict  with  his  great  feudal  nobility, 
many  of  whom  supported  the  pretensions  of  the  Ange- 
vin family.  But  his  superior  craft  enabled  him  to  foil 
every  attempt  of  his  enemies.  In  effecting  this,  in- 
deed, he  shrunk  from  no  deed  of  treachery  or  violence, 
however  atrocious,  and  in  the  end  had  the  satisfaction 
of  establishing  his  authority,  undisputed,  on  the  fears 
of  his  subjects.  He  was  about  seventy  years  of  age  at 
the  period  of  which  we  are  treating,  1493.  '^^^  ^^'"^ 
apparent,  Alfonso,  was  equally  sanguinary  in  his  tem- 
per, though  possessing  less  talent  for  dissimulation  than 
his  father. 

8  Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  epist.  119,  123. — Fleury,  Histoire  eccW- 
siastique,  contin.  (Paris,  1722),  torn.  xxiv.  lib.  117, p.  545. — Peter  Mar- 
tyr, whose  residence  and  rank  at  the  Spanish  court  gave  him  access  to 
the  best  sources  of  information  as  to  the  repute  in  which  the  new  pon- 
tiff was  held  there,  expresses  himself  in  one  of  his  letters  to  Cardinal 
Sforza,  who  had  assisted  at  his  election,  in  the  following  unequivocal 
language:  "  Sed  hoc  habeto,  princeps  illustrissime,  non  placuisse  meis 
Regibus  pontificatum  ad  Alexandrum,  quamvis  eorum  ditionarium, 
pervenisse.  Verentur  namque  ne  illius  cupiditas,  ne  ambitio,  ne  (quod 
gravius)  moUities  filialis  Christianam  religionem  in  prseceps  trahat." 
£pist.  119. 


L_. 


EXPEDITION  OF  CHARLES   VIII. 


263 


Such  was  the  character  of  the  principal  Italian  courts 
at  the  close  of  the  fifteenth  century.  The  politics  of 
the  country  were  necessarily  regulated  by  the  temper 
and  views  of  the  leading  powers.  They  were  essentially 
selfish  and  personal.  The  ancient  republican  forms  had 
been  gradually  effaced  during  this  century,  and  more 
arbitrary  ones  introduced.  The  name  of  freedom,  in- 
deed, was  still  inscribed  on  their  banners,  but  the  spirit 
had  disappeared.  In  almost  every  state,  great  or  small, 
some  military  adventurer  or  crafty  statesman  had  suc- 
ceeded in  raising  his  own  authority  on  the  liberties  of 
his  country;  and  his  sole  aim  seemed  to  be  to  enlarge 
it  still  further,  and  to  secure  it  against  the  conspiracies 
and  revolutions  which  the  reminiscence  of  ancient  in- 
dependence naturally  called  forth.  Such  was  the  case 
with  Tuscany,  Milan,  Naples,  and  the  numerous  sub- 
ordinate states.  In  Rome,  the  pontiff  proposed  no 
higher  object  than  the  concentration  of  wealth  and 
public  honors  in  the  hands  of  his  own  family.  In 
short,  the  administration  of  every  state  seemed  to  be 
managed  with  exclusive  reference  to  the  personal  in- 
terests of  its  chief.  Venice  was  the  only  power  of 
sufficient  strength  and  stability  to  engage  in  more 
extended  schemes  of  policy,  and  even  these  were 
conducted,  as  has  been  already  noticed,  in  the  narrow 
and  calculating  spirit  of  a  trading  corporation. 

But  while  no  spark  of  generous  patriotism  seemed  to 
warm  the  bosoms  of  the  Italians,  while  no  sense  of 
public  good,  or  even  menace  of  foreign  invasion,  could 
bring  them  to  act  in  concert  with  one  another,'  the 


9  A  remarkable  example  of  this  occurred  in   the  middle  of  the 
fifteenth  century,  when  the  inundation  of  the  Turks,  which  seemed 


a64 


ITALIAN   WARS. 


internal  condition  of  the  country  was  eminently  pros- 
perous. Italy  had  far  outstripped  the  rest  of  Europe 
in  the  various  arts  of  civilized  life ;  and  she  everywhere 
afforded  the  evidence  of  faculties  developed  by  unceas- 
ing intellectual  action.  The  face  of  the  country  itself 
was  like  a  garden;  "cultivated  through  all  its  plains 
to  the  very  tops  of  the  mountains ;  teeming  with  popu- 
lation, with  riches,  and  an  unlimited  commerce ;  illus- 
trated by  many  munificent  princes,  by  the  splendor  of 
many  noble  and  beautiful  cities,  and  by  the  majesty  of 
religion  J  and  adorned  with  all  those  rare  and  precious 
gifts  which  render  a  name  glorious  among  the  na- 
tions."'" Such  are  the  glowing  strains  in  which  the 
Tuscan  historian  celebrates  the  prosperity  of  his  coun- 
try, ere  yet  the  storm  of  war  had  descended  on  her 
beautiful  valleys. 

This  scene  of  domestic  tranquillity  was  destined  to 
be  changed  by  that  terrible  invasion  which  the  am- 
bition of  Lodovico  Sforza  brought  upon  his  country. 
He  had  already  organized  a  coalition  of  the  northern 
powers  of  Italy,  to  defeat  the  interference  of  the  king 
of  Naples  in  behalf  of  his  grandson,  the  rightful  duke 
of  Milan,  whom  his  uncle  held  in  subjection  during  a 
protracted  minority,  while  he  exercised  all  the  real 
functions  of  sovereignty  in  his  name.  Not  feeling  suf- 
ficiently secure  from  his  Italian  confederacy,  Sforza 
invited  the  king  of  P'rance  to  revive  the  hereditary 
claims  of  the  house  of  Anjou  to  the  crown  of  Naples, 

ready  to  burst  upon  them,  after  overwhelming  the  Arabian  and  Greek 
empires,  had  no  power  to  still  the  voice  of  faction,  or  to  concentrate 
the  attention  of  the  Italian  states,  even  for  a  moment. 
.    «o  Guicciardinii  Istoriaj  torn.  i.  lib.  i,  p.  2. 


EXPEDITION  OF  CHARLES     VIII. 


365 


promising  to  aid  him  in  the  enterprise  with  all  his 
resources.  In  this  way,  this  wily  politician  proposed 
to  divert  the  storm  from  his  own  head,  by  giving 
Ferdinand  sufficient  occupation  at  home. 

The  throne  of  France  was  at  that  time  filled  by 
Charles  the  Eighth,  a  monarch  scarcely  twenty-two 
years  of  age.  His  father,  Louis  the  Eleventh,  had 
given  him  an  education  unbecoming  not  only  a  great 
prince,  but  even  a  private  gentleman.  He  would  allow 
him  to  learn  no  other  Latin,  says  Brantdme,  than  his 
favorite  maxim,  "Qui  nescit  dissimulare,  nescit  reg- 
nare. '  *  "  Charles  made  some  amends  for  this,  though 
with  little  judgment,  in  later  life,  when  left  to  his  own 
disposal.  His  favorite  studies  were  the  exploits  of 
celebrated  conquerors,  of  Caesar  and  Charlemagne  par- 
ticularly, which  filled  his  young  mind  with  vague  and 
visionary  ideas  of  glory.  These  dreams  were  still  further 
nourished  by  the  tourneys  and  other  chivalrous  specta- 
cles of  the  age,  in  which  he  delighted,  until  he  seems 
to  have  imagined  himself  some  doughty  paladin  of 
romance,  destined  to  the  achievement  of  a  grand  and 
perilous  enterprise.  It  affords  some  proof  of  this  ex- 
alted state  of  his  imagination,  that  he  gave  his  only 
son  the  name  of  Orlando,  after  the  celebrated  hero  of 
Roncesvalles." 

With  a  mind  thus  excited  by  chimerical  visions  of 
military  glory,  he  lent  a  willing  ear  to  the  artful  propo- 
sitions of  Sforza.  In  the  extravagance  of  vanity,  fed 
by  the  adulation  of  interested  parasites,  he  affected  to 

H  Brantdme,  Vies  des  Hommes  illustres,  CEuvres  completes  (Paris, 
1822-3),  torn.  ii.  disc,  i,  pp.  2,  20. 

»»  Sismondi,  Hist,  des  Franfais,  torn.  xv.  p.  112. — Gaillard,  Rivalit6, 
torn.  iv.  pp.  2,  3. 


I  i 


I 


a66 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


regard  the  enterprise  against  Naples  as  only  opening 
the  way  to  a  career  of  more  splendid  conquests,  which 
were  to  terminate  in  the  capture  of  Constantinople  and 
the  recovery  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre.  He  even  went 
so  far  as  to  purchase  of  Andrew  Paleologus,  the  nephew 
and  heir  of  Constantine,  the  last  of  the  Caesars,  his 
title  to  the  Greek  empire.^' 

Nothing  could  be  more  unsound,  according  to  the 
principles  of  the  present  day,  than  Charles's  claims  to 
the  crown  of  Naples.  Without  discussing  the  original 
pretensions  of  the  rival  houses  of  Aragon  and  Anjou,  it 
is  sufficient  to  state  that  at  the  time  of  Charles  the 
Eighth's  invasion  the  Neapolitan  throne  had  been  in 
the  possession  of  the  Aragonese  family  more  than  half 
a  century,  under  three  successive  princes  solemnly  rec- 
ognized by  the  people,  sanctioned  by  repeated  investi- 
tures of  the  papal  suzerain,  and  admitted  by  all  the 
states  of  Europe.  If  all  this  did  not  give  validity  to 
their  title,  when  was  the  nation  to  expect  repose? 
Chailes's  claim,  on  the  other  hand,  was  derived  origi- 
nally from  a  testamentary  bequest  of  Ren6,  count  of 
Provence,  operating  to  the  exclusion  of  the  son  of  his 
own  daughter,  the  rightful  heir  of  the  house  of  Anjou;* 

«3  Daru,  Histoire  de  la  R^publique  de  Venise  (Paris,  1821),  torn.  iii. 
liv.  20. — See  the  deed  of  cession,  in  the  memoir  of  M.  de  Foncemagne. 
(Mimoires  de  I'Acad^mie  des  Inscriptions  et  Belles-Lettres,  tom.  xvii. 
pp.  539-579-)  This  document,  as  well  as  some  others  which  appeared 
on  the  eve  of  Charles's  expedition,  breathes  a  tone  of  Quixotic  and 
religious  enthusiasm  that  transports  us  back  to  the  days  of  the  crusades 


•  [This  is  somewhat  incorrectly  stated.    The  French  claim  was  de- 
rived, not  from  the  testament  of  Ren^,  under  which  his  nephew,  Charles 


EXPEDITION  OF  CHARLES   VIII. 


267 


Naples  being  too  notoriously  a  female  fief  to  afford  any 
pretext  for  the  action  of  the  Salic  law.  The  preten- 
sions of  Ferdinand  of  Spain,  as  representative  of  the 
legitimate  branch  of  Aragon,  were  far  more  plausible.'* 
Independently  of  the  defects  in  Charles's  title,  his 
position  was  such  as  to  make  the  projected  expedition 
every  way  impolitic.  A  misunderstanding  had  for 
some  time  subsisted  between  him  and  the  Spanish  sov- 
ereigns, and  he  was  at  open  war  with  Germany  and 
England ;  so  that  it  was  only  by  large  concessions  that 
he  could  hope  to  secure  their  acquiescence  in  an  enter- 
prise most  precarious  in  its  character,  and  where  even 
complete  success  could  be  of  no  permanent  benefit  to 
his  kingdom.  "He  did  not  understand,"  says  Vol- 
taire, "  that  a  dozen  villages  adjacent  to  one's  territory 
are  of  more  value  than  a  kingdom  four  hundred  leagues 
distant."  '*    By  the  treaties  of  Etaples  and  Senlis,  he 

14  The  conflicting  claims  of  Anjou  and  Aragon  are  stated  at  length 
by  Gaillard,  with  more  candor  and  impartiality  than  were  to  be  expected 
from  a  French  writer.  (Histoire  de  Fran9ois  I.  (Paris,  1769),  torn.  i. 
pp.  71-92.)  They  form  the  subject  of  a  juvenile  essay  of  Gibbon,  in 
which  we  may  discern  the  germs  of  many  of  the  peculiarities  which 
afterwards  characterized  the  historian  of  the  Decline  and  Fall.  Mis- 
cellaneous Works  (London,  18 14),  vol.  iii.  pp.  206-222. 

'S  Essai  sur  les  Mceurs,  chap.  107. — His  politic  father,  Louis  XI., 
acted  on  this  principle,  for  he  made  no  attempt  to  maintain  his  preten- 
sions to  Naples ;  although  Mably  affects  to  doubt  whether  this  was 


of  Maine,  succeeded  him,  in  July,  1480,  as  count  of  Provence  and 
titular  king  of  Sicily,  but  from  the  will  of  this  latter  prince,  who  died 
childless  in  December,  1481,  coupled  with  alleged  earlier  settlements 
uniting  Naples  and  Provence,  with  the  effect,  as  was  maintained,  of 
excluding  female  branches  from  the  succession.  Conf.  Comines, 
M6moires,  liv.  7,  chap,  i,  and  documents  in  Lenglet,  torn.  iii.  pp. 
324-336,  torn,  iv.  par.  2,  pp.  5-13.— Ed.] 


268 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


I  s 


purchased  a  reconciliation  with  Henry  the  Seventh  of 
England,  and  with  Maximilian,  the  emperor  elect; 
and  finally,  by  that  of  Barcelona,  effected  an  amicable 
adjustment  of  his  difficulties  with  Spain.** 

This  treaty,  which  involved  the  restoration  of  Rous- 
sillon  and  Cerdagne,  was  of  great  importance  to  the 
crown  of  Aragon.  These  provinces,  it  will  be  remem- 
bered, had  been  originally  mortgaged  by  Ferdinand's 
father.  King  John  the  Second,  to  Louis  the  Eleventh 
of  France,  for  the  sum  of  three  hundred  thousand 
crowns,  in  consideration  of  aid  to  be  afforded  by  the 
latter  monarch  against  the  Catalan  insurgents.  Al- 
though the  stipulated  sum  had  never  been  paid  by 
Aragon,  yet  a  plausible  pretext  for  requiring  the  resti- 
tution was  afforded  by  Louis  the  Eleventh's  incomplete 
performance  of  his  engagements,  as  well  as  by  the  ample 
reimbursement  which  the  French  government  had 
already  derived  from  the  revenues  of  these  countries.*' 

not  the  result  of  necessity  rather  than  policy.  "  II  est  douteux  si  cette 
moderation  fut  I'ouvrage  d'une  connoissance  approfondie  de  ses  vrais 
int^rets,  ou  seulement  de  cette  defiance  qu'il  avoit  des  grands  de  son 
royaume,  et  qu'il  n'osoit  perdre  de  vue."  Observations  sur  I'Histoire 
de  France,  CEuvres  (Paris,  1794-5),  liv-  6.  chap,  4. 

«*  Flassan,  Histoire  de  la  Diplomatie  Fran9aise  (Paris,  1809),  torn.  i. 
pp.  254-259. — Dumont,  Corps  universel  diplomatique  du  Droit  des 
Gens  (Amsterdam,  1726-31),  torn.  iii.  pp.  297-300. 

17  See  the  narrative  of  these  transactions  in  the  fifth  and  sixth  chap- 
ters of  Part  I.  of  this  History. — Most  historians  seem  to  take  it  for 
granted  that  Louis  XI.  advanced  a  sum  of  money  to  the  king  of  Ara- 
gon ;  and  some  state  that  payment  of  the  debt  for  which  the  prov- 
inces were  mortgaged  was  subsequently  tendered  to  the  French  king. 
(See,  among  others,  Sismondi,  R^publiques  Italiennes,  tom.  xii.  p.  93. 
— Roscoe,  Life  and  Pontificate  of  Leo  X.  (London,  1827),  vol.  i.  p. 
147.)  The  first  of  these  statements  is  a  palpable  error ;  and  I  find  no 
evidence  of  the  last  in  any  Spanish  authority,  where,  if  true,  it  would 


EXPEDITION  OF  CHARLES   VIII. 


269 


This  treaty  had  long  been  a  principal  object  of  Fer- 
dinand's policy.  He  had  not,  indeed,  confined  him- 
self to  negotiation,  but  had  made  active  demonstrations 
more  than  once  of  occupying  the  contested  territory 
by  force.  Negotiation,  however,  was  more  consonant 
to  his  habitual  policy;  and,  after  the  termination  of 
the  Moorish  war,  he  pressed  it  with  the  utmost  vigor, 
repairing  with  the  queen  to  Barcelona,  in  order  to 
watch  over  the  deliberations  of  the  envoys  of  the  two 
nations  at  Figueras.* 

The  French  historians  accuse  Ferdinand  of  bribing 
two  ecclesiastics,  in  high  influence  at  their  court,  to 
make  such  a  representation  of  the  affair  as  should  alarm 
the  conscience  of  the  young  monarch.  These  holy 
men  insisted  on  the  restoration  of  Roussillon  as  an 
act  of  justice ;  since  the  sums  for  which  it  had  been 
mortgaged,  though  not  repaid,  had  been  spent  in  the 
common  cause  of  Christendom,  the  Moorish  war.  The 
soul,  they  said,  could  never  hope  to  escape  from  pur- 
gatory until  restitution  was  made  of  all  property 
unlawfully  held  during  life.  His  royal  father,  Louis 
the  Eleventh,  was  clearly  in  this  predicament,  ds  he 

naturally  have  been  noticed.  I  must,  indeed,  except  Bemaldez,  who 
says  that  Ferdinand,  having  repaid  the  money,  borrowed  by  his  father 
from  Louis  XI.,  to  Charles  VIII.,  the  latter  monarch  returned  it  to 
Isabella,  in  consideration  of  the  great  expenses  incurred  by  the  Moor- 
ish war.  It  is  a  pity  that  this  romantic  piece  of  gallantry  does  not  rest 
on  any  better  authority  than  that  of  the  Curate  of  \ja%  Palacios,  who 
shows  a  degree  of  ignorance  in  the  first  part  of  his  statement  that  entitles 
him  to  little  credit  in  the  last.  Indeed,  the  worthy  Curate,  although 
much  to  be  relied  on  for  what  passed  in  his  own  province,  may  be 
found  frequently  tripping  in  the  details  of  what  passed  out  jf  it. 
Bernaldez,  Reyes  Cat61icos,  MS.,  cap.  117. 
»«  Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  lib.  i,  cap.  4,  7,  10. 


270 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


himself  would  hereafter  be,  unless  the  Spanish  territo- 
ries should  be  relinquished  ;  a  measure,  moreover,  the 
more  obligatory  on  him,  since  it  was  well  known  to  be 
the  dying  request  of  his  parent,  , These  arguments 
made  a  suitable  impression  on  the  young  monarch,  and 
a  still  deeper  on  his  sister,  the  duchess  of  Beaujeu,  who 
exercised  great  influence  over  him,  and  who  believed 
her  own  soul  in  peril  of  eternal  damnation  by  deferring 
the  act  of  restoration  any  longer.  The  effect  of  this 
cogent  reasoning  was  no  doubt  greatly  enhanced  by 
the  reckless  impatience  of  Charles,  who  calculated  no 
cost  in  the  prosecution  of  his  chimerical  enterprise. 
With  these  amicable  dispositions  an  arrangement  was 
at  length  concluded,  and  received  the  signatures  of  the 
respective  monarchs  on  the  same  day,  being  signed  by 
Charles  at  Tours,  and  by  Ferdinand  and  Isabella  at 
Barcelona,  January  19th,  1493.'' 

The  principal  articles  of  the  treaty  provided  that 
the  contracting  parties  should  mutually  aid  each  other 
against  all  enemies ;  that  they  should  reciprocally  pre- 
fer this  alliance  to  that  with  any  other,  the  vicar  of 
Christ  excepted:  that  the  Spanish  sovereigns  should 
enter  into  no  understanding  with  any  power,  the  vicar 

»9  Fleury,  Histoire  eccl^siastique,  contin.,  torn.  xxiv.  pp.  533-555. — 
Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  lib.  i,  cap.  14. — Daru,  Hist,  de  Ve- 
nise,  torn,  iii,  pp.  51,  52. — Gaillard,  Rivalit^,  torn.  iv.  p.  10. — Abarca, 
Reyes  de  Aragon,  torn,  ii.  rey  30,  cap.  6.— Comines.  alluding  to  the 
affair  of  Roussillon,  says  that  Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  whether  from 
motives  of  economy  or  hypocrisy,  always  employed  priests  in  tlieir 
negotiations :  "  Car  toutes  leurs  oeuvres  ont  fait  mener  et  conduire  par 
telles  gens  (religjeUx),  ou  par  hypocrisie,  ou  afin  de  moins  despen- 
dre."  (Memoires,  p.  211.)  The  French  king,  however,  made  more 
use  of  the  clergy  in  this  very  transaction  tlian  the  Spanish.  Zurita, 
Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  lib.  i,  cap.  10. 


EXPEDITION  OF  CHARLES   VIII. 


271 


0/  Christ  excepted,  prejudicial  to  the  interests  of  France; 
that  their  children  should  not  be  disposed  of  in  mar- 
riage to  the  kings  of  England  or  of  the  Romans,  or 
to  any  enemy  of  France,  witliout  the  French  king's 
consent.  It  was  finally  stipulated  that  Roussillon  and 
Cerdagne  should  be  restored  to  Aragon,  but  that,  as 
doubts  might  be  entertained  to  which  power  the  pos- 
session of  these  countries  rightfully  appertained,  arbi- 
trators named  by  Ferdinand  and  Isabella  should  be 
appointed,  if  requested  by  the  French  monarch,  with 
full  power  to  decide  the  question,  by  whose  judgment  the 
contracting  parties  mutually  promised  to  abide.  This 
last  provision,  obviously  too  well  guarded  to  jeopard 
the  interests  of  the  Spanish  sovereigns,  was  introduced 
to  allay  in  some  measure  the  discontents  of  the  French, 
who  loudly  inveighed  against  their  cabinet,  as  sacri- 
ficing the  interests  of  the  nation  ;  accusing,  indeed, 
the  cardinal  D'Albi,  the  principal  agent  in  the  nego- 
tiation, of  being  in  the  pay  of  Ferdinand.* 

The  treaty  excited  equal  surprise  and  satisfaction  in 
Spain,  where  Roussillon  was  regarded  as  of  the  last 
importance,  not  merely  from   the   extent  of  its  re- 

«>  Paolo  Giovio,  Hist,  sui  Temporis  (Basilise,  1578),  lib.  i,  p.  16. 
— The  treaty  of  Barcelona  is  given  at  length  by  Dumont  (Corps  diplo- 
matique, torn.  iii.  pp.  297-300).  It  is  reported  with  sufficient  inaccu- 
racy by  many  historians,  who  make  no  hesitation  in  saying  that  Ferdi- 
nand expressly  bound  himself,  by  one  of  the  articles,  not  to  interfere 
with  Charles's  meditated  attempt  on  Naples.  (Gaillard,  Rivalite,  tom. 
iv.  p.  II. — Voltaire,  Essai  sur  les  Moeurs,  chap.  107. — Comines,  M^- 
moires,  liv.  8,  chap.  23. — Giovio,  Hist,  sui  Temporis,  lib.  i,  p.  16. — 
Varillas,  PoHtioue  d'Espagne,  ou  du  Roi  Ferdinand  (Amsterdam, 
1688),  pp.  II,  12.— Roscoe,  Life  of  Leo  X.,  tom.  i.  chap.  3.)  So  far 
from  this,  there  is  no  allusion  whatever  to  the  proposed  expedition  in 
the  treaty,  nor  is  the  name  of  Naples  once  mentioned  in  it. 


272 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


sources,  but  from  its  local  position,  which  made  it  the 
key  of  Catalonia.  The  nation,  says  Zurita,  looked  on 
its  recovery  as  scarcely  less  important  than  the  con- 
quest of  Granada ;  and  they  doubted  some  sinister 
motive,  or  deeper  policy  than  appeared  in  the  conduct 
of  the  French  king.  He  was  influenced,  however,  by 
no  deeper  policy  than  the  cravings  of  a  puerile  ambi- 
tion." 

The  preparations  of  Charles,  in  the  mean  while, 
excited  general  alarm  throughout  Italy.  Ferdinand, 
the  old  king  of  Naples,  who  in  vain  endeavored  to  arrest 
them  by  negotiation,  had  died  in  the  beginning  of 
1494.  He  was  succeeded  by  his  son  Alfonso,  a  prince 
of  bolder  but  less  politic  character,  and  equally  odious, 
from  the  cruelty  of  his  disposition,  with  his  father. 
He  lost  no  time  in  putting  his  kingdom  in  a  posture 
of  defence ;  but  he  wanted  the  best  of  all  defences,  the 
attachment  of  his  subjects.  His  interests  were  sup- 
ported by  the  Florentine  republic  and  the  pope,  whose 
family  had  intermarried  with  the  royal  house  of  Naples. 
Venice  stood  aloof,  secure  in  her  remoteness,  unwill- 
ing to  compromise  her  interests  by  too  precipitate  a 
declaration  in  favor  of  either  party. 

The  European  powers  regarded  the  expedition  of 
Charles  the  Eighth  with  somewhat  different  feelings  j 
most  of  them  were  not  unwilling  to  see  so  formidable 
a  prince  waste  his  resources  in  a  remote  and  chimerical 
expedition  ;  Ferdinand,  however,  contemplated  with 
more  anxiety  an  event  which  might  terminate  in  the 
subversion  of  the  Neapolitan  branch  of  his  house,  and 

•*  Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  lib.  i,  cap.  18. — Abarca,  Reyes 
de  Aragon,  ubi  supra. 


EXPEDITION  OF  CHARLES    VIII. 


273 


bring  a  powerful  and  active  neighbor  in  contact  with 
his  own  dominions  in  Sicily.  He  lost  no  time  in  forti- 
fying the  faltering  courage  of  the  pope  by  assurances 
of  support.  His  ambassador  then  resident  at  the  papal 
court  was  Garcilasso  de  la  Vega,  father  of  the  illustri- 
ous poet  of  that  name,  and  familiar  to  the  reader  \)y 
his  exploits  in  the  Granadine  war.  This  personage 
with  rare  political  sagacity  combined  an  energy  of 
purpose  which  could  not  fail  to  infuse  courage  into 
the  hearts  of  others.  He  urged  the  pope  to  rely  on 
his  master,  the  king  of  Aragon,  who,  he  assured 
him,  would  devote  all  his  resources,  if  necessary, 
to  the  protection  of  his  person,  honor,  and  estate. 
Alexander  would  gladly  have  had  this  promise  under 
the  hand  of  Ferdinand ;  but  the  latter  did  not  think 
it  expedient,  considering  his  delicate  relations  with 
France,  to  put  himself  so  far  in  the  power  of  the  wily 
pontiff." 

In  the  mean  time,  Charles's  preparations  went  for- 
ward with  the  languor  and  vacillation  resulting  from  di- 
vided councils  and  multiplied  embarrassments.  **  No- 
thing essential  to  the  conduct  of  a  war  was  at  hand," 
says  Comines.  The  king  was  very  young,  weak  in 
person,  headstrong  in  will,  surrounded  by  few  discreet 
counsellors,  and  wholly  destitute  of  the  requisite  funds.*' 
His  own  impatience,  however,  was  stimulated  by  that 
of  the  youthful  chivalry  of  his  court,  who  burned  for 
an  opportunity  of  distinction )  as  well  as  by  the  repre- 

«  Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  lib.  i,  cap.  28. — Bembo,  Istoria 
Viniziana  (Milano,  1809),  torn.  i.  lib.  2,  pp.  118,  119. — Oviedo,  Quin- 
cuagenas,  MS.,  bat.  i,  quinc.  3,  dial.  43. 

»3  Comines,  Memoires,  liv.  7,  introd 
Vol.  II.— 18  M» 


274 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


?       I; 


sentations  of  the  Neapolitan  exiles,  who  hoped,  under 
his  protection,  to  re-establish  themselves  in  their  own 
country.  Several  of  these,  weary  with  the  delay  al- 
ready experienced,  made  overtures  to  King  Ferdinand 
to  undertake  the  enterprise  on  his  own  behalf,  and  to 
assert  his  legitimate  pretensions  to  the  crown  of  Naples, 
which,  they  assured  him,  a  large  party  in  the  country 
was  ready  to  sustain.  The  sagacious  monarch,  how- 
ever, knew  how  little  reliance  was  to  be  placed  on  the 
reports  of  exiles,  whose  imaginations  readily  exagge- 
rated the  amount  of  disaffection  in  their  own  country. 
But,  although  the  season  had  not  yet  arrived  for  assert- 
ing his  own  paramount  claims,  he  was  determined  to 
tolerate  those  of  no  other  potentate."* 

Charles  entertained  so  little  suspicion  of  this,  that  in 
the  month  of  June  he  despatched  an  envoy  to  the  Span- 
ish court,  requiring  Ferdinand's  fulfilment  of  the  treaty 
of  Barcelona,  by  aiding  him  with  men  and  money,  and 
by  throwing  open  his  ports  in  Sicily  for  the  French 
navy.  "This  gracious  proposition,"  says  the  Ara- 
gonese  historian,  "he  accompanied  with  information 
of  his  proposed  expedition  against  the  Turks ;  stating 
incidentally,  as  a  thing  of  no  consequence,  his  intention 
to  take  Naples  by  the  way."  =* 

Ferdinand  saw  the  time  was  arrived  for  coming  to 

»4  Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  lib.  i,  cap.  20. — Peter  Martyr, 
Opus  Epist.,  epist.  123. — Comines,  M^moires,  liv.  7,  chap.  3. — Mariana, 
Hist,  de  Espaiia,  torn.  ii.  lib.  26,  cap.  6. — Zurita  concludes  the  argu- 
ments which  decided  Ferdinand  against  assuming  the  enterprise,  with 
one  which  may  be  considered  the  gist  of  the  whole  matter:  "  El  Rey 
entendia  bien  que  no  era  tan  facil  la  causa  que  se  proponia."  lib.  i, 
cap.  20. 

■s  Zurita,  Hist  del  Rey  Hernando,  lib.  i,  cap.  31. 


: 


EXPEDITION  OF  CHARLES    VJII. 


275 


an  explicit  declaration  with  the  French  court.  He  ap- 
pointed a  special  mission,  in  order  to  do  this  in  the 
least  offensive  manner  possible.  The  person  selected 
for  this  delicate  task  was  Alonso  de  Silva,  brother  of 
the  count  of  Cifuentes,  and  clavero  of  Calatrava,  a 
cavalier  possessed  of  the  coolness  and  address  requisite 
for  diplomatic  success."* 

The  ambassador,  on  arriving  at  the  French  court, 
found  it  at  Vienne  in  all  the  bustle  of  preparation  for 
immediate  departure.  After  seeking  in  vain  a  private 
audience  from  King  Charles,  he  explained  to  him  the 
purport  of  his  mission  in  the  presence  of  his  courtiers. 
He  assured  him  of  the  satisfaction  which  the  king  of 
Aragon  had  experienced  at  receiving  intelligence  of 
his  projected  expedition  against  the  infidel.  Nothing 
gave  his  master  so  great  contentment  as  to  see  his 
brother  monarchs  employing  their  arms  and  expend- 
ing their  revenues  against  the  enemies  of  the  Cross; 
where  even  failure  was  greater  gain  than  success  in 
other  wars.  He  offered  Ferdinand's  assistance  in  the 
prosecution  of  such  wars,  even  though  they  should 
be  directed  against  the  Mahometans  of  Africa,  over 
whom  the  papal  sanction  had  given  Spain  exclusive 
rights  of  conquest.  He  besought  the  king  not  to 
employ  the  forces  destined  to  so  glorious  a  purpose 
against  any  one  of  the  princes  of  Europe,  but  to  reflect 
how  great  a  scandal  this  must  necessarily  bring  on  the 
Christian  cause ;  above  all,  he  cautioned  him  against 

"*  Oviedo  notices  Silva  as  one  of  three  brothers,  all  gentle  cavaliers, 
of  unblemished  honor,  remarkable  for  the  plainness  of  their  persons, 
the  elegance  and  courtesy  of  their  manners,  and  the  magnificence  of 
their  style  of  living.  This  one,  Alonso,  he  describes  as  a  man  of  a  sin- 
gularly clear  head.     Quincuagenas,  MS.,  bat.  i,  quinc.  4. 


276 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


forming  any  designs  on  Naples,  since  that  kingdom 
was  a  fief  of  the  church,  in  whose  favor  an  exception 
was  expressly  made  by  the  treaty  of  Barcelona,  which 
recognized  her  alliance  and  protection  as  paramount 
to  every  other  obligation.  Silva's  discourse  was  re- 
sponded to  by  the  president  of  the  parliament  of  Paris 
in  a  formal  Latin  oration,  asserting  generally  Charles's 
right  to  Naples,  and  his  resolution  to  enforce  it  pre- 
viously to  his  crusade  against  the  infidel.  As  soon  as 
it  was  concluded,  the  king  rose  and  abruptly  quitted 
the  apartment.'' 

Some  days  after,  he  interrogated  the  Spanish  am- 
bassador, whether  his  master  would  not,  in  case  of  a 
war  with  Portugal,  feel  warranted  by  the  terms  of  the 
late  treaty  in  requiring  the  co-operation  of  France, 
and  on  what  plea  the  latter  power  could  pretend  to 
withhold  it.  To  the  first  of  these  propositions  the 
ambassador  answered  in  the  affirmative,  if  it  were  a 
defensive  war,  but  not,  if  an  offensive  one,  of  his  own 
seeking;  an  explanation  by  no  means  satisfactory  to 
the  French  monarch.  Indeed,  he  seems  not  to  have 
been  at  all  prepared  for  this  interpretation  of  the  com- 
pact. He  had  relied  on  this,  as  securing  without  any 
doubt  the  non-interference  of  Ferdinand,  if  not  his 
actual  co-operation  in  his  designs  against  Naples.  The 
clause  touching  the  rights  of  the  church  was  too  fre- 
quent in  public  treaties  to  excite  any  particular  atten- 
tion ;  and  he  was  astounded  at  the  broad  ground  which 
it  was  now  made  to  cover,  and  which  defeated  the  sole 
object  proposed  by  the  cession  of  Roussillon.  He  could 
not  disguise  his  chagrin  and  indignation  at  what  he 

1  Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  ubi  supra. 


EXPEDITION  OF  CHARLES   VIII 


277 


deemed  the  perfidy  of  the  Spanish  court.  He  refused 
all  further  intercourse  with  Silva,  and  even  stationed  a 
sentinel  at  his  gate,  to  prevent  his  communication  with 
his  subjects;  treating  him  as  the  envoy,  not  of  an  ally, 
but  of  an  open  enemy.* 

The  unexpected  and  menacing  attitude,  however, 
assumed  by  Ferdinand,  failed  to  arrest  the  operations 
of  the  French  monarch,  who,  having  completed  his 
preparations,  left  Vienne  in  the  month  of  August,  1494, 
and  crossed  the  Alps  at  the  head  of  the  most  formidable 
host  which  had  scaled  that  mountain  barrier  since  the 
irruption  of  the  northern  barbarians."*  It  will  be 
unnecessary  to  follow  his  movements  in  detail.  It  is 
sufficient  to  remark  that  his  conduct  throughout  was 
equally  defective  in  principle  and  in  sound  policy.  He 
alienated  his  allies  by  the  most  signal  acts  of  perfidy, 
seizing  their  fortresses  for  himself,  and  entering  their 

»•  Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  lib.  i,  cap.  31,  41. 

=9  Villeneuve,  Memoires,  apud  Petitot,  Collection  des  Memoires, 
torn.  xiv.  pp.  255,  256. — The  French  army  consisted  of  3600  gens 
d'armes,  20,000  French  infantry,  and  8000  Swiss,  without  including 
the  regular  camp-followers.  (Sismondi,  R^publiques  Italiennes,  torn, 
xii.  p.  132.)  The  splendor  and  novelty  of  their  appearance  excited  a 
degree  of  admiration  which  disarmed  in  some  measure  the  terror  of 
the  Italians.  Peter  Martyr,  whose  distance  from  the  theatre  of  action 
enabled  him  to  contemplate  more  calmly  the  operation  of  events,  be- 
held with  a  prophetic  eye  the  magnitude  of  the  cilamities  impending 
over  his  country.  In  one  of  his  letters,  he  writes  thus :  "  Scribitur 
exercitum  visum  fuisse  nostra  tempestate  nullum  unquam  nitidiorem. 
£t  qui  futuri  sunt  calamitatis  participes,  Carolum  aciesque  illius 
ac  peditum  turmas  laudibus  extollunt;  sed  Italorum  impensa  in- 
structas."  (Opus  Epist,,  epist.  143.)  He  concludes  another  with 
this  remarkable  prediction :  "  Perimeris,  Galle,  ex  majori  parte,  nee 
in  patriam  redibis.  Jacebis  insepultus ;  sed  tua  non  restituetur  strages, 
Italia."  Epist.  123. 


•78 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


capitals  with  all  the  vaunt  and  insolent  port  of  a  con- 
queror. On  his  approach  to  Rome,  the  pope  and  the 
cardinals  took  refuge  in  the  castle  of  St.  Angelo,  and 
on  the  31st  of  December,  1494,  Charles  defiled  into 
the  city  at  the  head  of  his  victorious  chivalry;  if 
victorious  they  could  be  called,  when,  as  an  Italian 
historian  remarks,  they  had  scarcely  broken  a  lance, 
or  spread  a  tent,  in  the  whole  of  their  progress.** 

The  Italians  were  panic-struck  at  the  aspect  of  troops 
so  different  from  their  own,  and  so  superior  to  them 
in  organization,  science,  and  military  equipment ;  and 
still  more  in  a  remorseless  ferocity  of  temper  which  had 
rarely  been  witnessed  in  their  own  feuds.  Warfare  was 
conducted  on  peculiar  principles  in  Italy,  adapted  to 
the  character  and  circumstances  of  the  people.  The 
business  of  fighting,  in  her  thriving  communities,  in- 
stead of  forming  part  of  the  regular  profession  of  a 
gentleman,  as  in  other  countries  at  this  period,  was 
intrusted  to  the  hands  of  a  few  soldiers  of  fortune, 
condottierif  as  they  were  called,  who  hired  themselves 
out,  with  the  forces  under  their  command,  consisting 
exclusively  of  heavy-armed  cavalry,  to  whatever  state 
would  pay  them  best.  These  forces  constituted  the 
capital,  as  it  were,  of  the  military  chief,  whose  obvious 
interest  it  was  to  economize  as  far  as  possible,  avoiding 
all  unnecessary  expenditure  of  his  resources.  Hence 
the  science  of  defence  was  almost  exclusively  studied. 
The  object  seemed  to  be,  not  so  much  the  annoyance  of 

3°  Guicciardinl,  Istoria,  torn.  i.  lib.  i,  p.  71. — Scipione  Ammirato, 
Istorie  Florentine  (Firenze,  1647),  p.  205. — Giannone,  Istoria  di  Na- 
poli,  torn.  iii.  lib.  29,  introd. — Comines,  Memoires,  liv.  7,  chap.  17.-- 
Oviedo,  Quincuagenas,  MS.,  bat.  i,  quinc.  3,  dial.  43. 


EXPEDIlfON  OF  CHARLES   VIJI. 


279 


the  enemy,  as  self  preservation.  The  common  interests 
of  the  condoitieri  being  paramount  to  every  obliga- 
tion to  the  state  which  they  served,  they  eanily  came 
to  an  understanding  with  one  another  to  spare  their 
troops  as  much  as  possible ;  until  at  length  battles  were 
fought  with  little  more  personal  hazard  than  would  be 
incurred  in  an  ordinary  tourney.  The  man-at-arms 
was  riveted  into  plates  of  steel  of  sufficient  thickness 
to  turn  a  musket-ball.  The  ease  of  the  soldier  was  so 
far  consulted  that  the  artillery,  in  a  siege,  was  not 
allowed  to  be  fired  on  either  side  from  sunset  to  sunrise, 
for  fear  of  disturbing  his  repose.  Prisoners  were  made 
for  the  sake  of  their  ransom,  and  but  little  blood  was 
spilled  in  an  action.  Machiavelli  records  two  engage- 
ments, at  Anghiari  and  Castracaro,  among  the  most 
noted  of  the  time  ifor  their  important  consequences. 
The  one  lasted  four  hours,  and  the  other  half  a  day. 
The  reader  is  hurried  along  through  all  the  bustle  of  a 
well-contested  fight,  in  the  course  of  which  the  field  is 
won  and  lost  several  times ;  but,  when  he  comes  to  the 
close,  and  looks  for  the  list  of  killed  and  wounded,  he 
finds  to  his  surprise  not  a  single  man  slain  in  the  first 
of  these  actions,  and  in  the  second  only  one,  who, 
having  tumbled  from  his  horse,  and  being  unable  to 
rise,  from  the  weight  of  his  armor,  was  suffocated  in 
the  mud  !  Thus  war  became  disarmed  of  its  terrors. 
Courage  was  no  longer  essential  in  a  soldier;  and  the 
Italian,  made  effeminate,  if  not  timid,  was  incapable 
of  encountering  the  adventurous  daring  and  severe 
discipline  of  the  northern  warrior.'' 

V  Du  Bos,  Histoire  de  la  Ligue  faite  k  Cambray  (Paris,  1728),  torn. 


28o 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


tt<  'I 
I  I 


The  astonishing  success  of  the  French  was  still  more 
imputable  to  the  free  use  and  admirable  organization 
of  their  infantry,  whose  strength  lay  in  the  Swiss  mer- 
cenaries. Machiavelli  ascribes  the  misfortunes  of  his 
nation  chiefly  to  its  exclusive  reliance  on  cavalry.** 
This  service,  during  the  whole  of  the  Middle  Ages, 
was  considered  among  the  European  nations  the 
most  important ;  the  horse  being  styled  by  way  of 
eminence  "the  battle."  The  memorable  conflict  of 
Charles  the  Bold  with  the  Swiss  mountaineers,  how- 
ever, in  which  the  latter  broke  in  pieces  the  celebrated 
Burgundian  ordonnances,  constituting  the  finest  body 
of  chivalry  of  the  age,  demonstrated  the  capacity  of 
infantry;  and  the  Italian  wars,  with  which  we  are 
now  engaged,  at  length  fully  re-established  its  ancient 
superiority. 

The  Swiss  were  formed  into  battalions  varying  from 
three  to  eight  thousand  men  each.  They  wore  little 
defensive  armor,  and  their  principal  weapon  was  the 
pike,  eighteen  feet  long.  Formed  into  these  solid  bat- 
talions, which,  bristling  with  spears  all  around,  received 
the  technical  appellation  of  the  hedgehog,  they  presented 
an  invulnerable  front  on  every  qi'arter.  In  the  level 
field,  with  free  scope  allowed  for  action,  they  bore 
down  all  opposition,  and  received  unshaken  the  most 
desperate  charges  of  the  steel-clad  cavalry  on  their 
terrible  array  of  pikes.  They  were  too  unwieldy,  how- 
ever, for  rapid  or  complicated  manoeuvres ;  they  were 
easily  disconcerted  by  any  unforeseen  impediment,  or 
irregularity  of  the  ground ;  and  the  event  proved  that 

i.  dissert,  prelim.  —  Machiavelli,  Istorie  Florentine,  lib.  5.  —  Denina, 
Rivoluzioni  d'ltalia,  lib.  18,  cap.  3. 
3»  Arte  della  Guerra,  lib.  2. 


EXPEDITION  OF  CHARLES   VIII. 


281 


the  Spanish  foot,  armed  with  its  short  swords  and  buck- 
lers, by  breaking  in  under  the  long  pikes  of  its  enemy, 
could  succeed  in  bringing  him  to  close  action,  where 
his  formidable  weapon  was  of  no  avail.  It  was  repeat- 
ing the  ancient  lesson  of  the  Roman  legion  and  the 
Macedonian  phalanx. ^^ 

In  artillery  the  French  were  at  this  time  in  advance 
of  the  Italians,  perhaps  of  every  nation  in  Europe. 
The  Italians,  indeed,  were  so  exceedingly  defective  in 
this  department  that  their  best  field -pieces  consisted 
of  small  copper  tubes  covered  with  wood  and  hides. 
They  were  mounted  on  unwieldy  carriages  drawn  by 
oxen,  and  followed  by  cars  or  wagons  loaded  with 
stone  balls.  These  guns  were  worked  so  awkwardly 
that  the  besieged,  says  Guicciardini,  had  time  between 
the  discharges  to  repair  the  mischief  inflicted  by  them. 
From  these  circumstances,  artillery  was  held  in  so  little 
repute  that  some  of  the  most  competent  Italian  writers 
thought  it  might  be  dispensed  with  altogether  in  field 
engagements.^* 

The  French,  on  the  other  hand,  were  provided  with 
a  beautiful  train  of  ordnance,  consisting  of  bronze 
cannon  about  eight  feet  in  length,  and  many  smaller 

33  Machiavelli,  Arte  della  Guerra,  lib.  3. — Du  Bos,  Ligue  de  Cam- 
bray,  torn.  i.  dis.  prelim. — Giovio,  Hist,  sui  Temporis,  lib.  2,  p.  41. 
— Polybius,  in  his  minute  account  of  this  celebrated  military  institution 
of  the -Greeks,  has  recapitulated  nearly  all  the  advantages  and  defects 
imputed  to  the  Swiss  hirisson  by  modem  European  writers.  (See  lib. 
17,  sec.  25  et  seq.)  It  is  singular  that  these  exploded  arms  and  tactics 
should  be  revived,  after  the  lapse  of  nearly  seventeen  centuries,  to  be 
foiled  again  in  the  same  manner  as  before. 

34  Guicciardini,  Istoria,  torn.  i.  pp.  45,  46. — Machiavelli,  Arte  della 
Guerra,  lib.  3, — Du  Bos,  Ligue  de  Cambray,  ubi  supra. 


a82 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


pieces. 's  They  were  lightly  mounted,  drawn  by  horses, 
and  easily  kept  pace  with  the  rapid  movements  of  the 
army.  They  discharged  iron  balls,  and  were  served 
with  admirable  skill,  intimidating  their  enemies  by  the 
rapidity  and  accuracy  of  their  fire,  and  easily  demol- 
ishing their  fortifications,  which,  before  this  invasion, 
were  constructed  with  little  strength  or  scielice.^* 

The  rapid  successes  of  the  French  spread  consterna- 
tion among  the  Italian  states,  who  now  for  the  first 
time  seemed  to  feel  the  existence  of  a  common  in- 
terest and  the  necessity  of  efficient  concert.  Fer- 
dinand was  active  in  promoting  these  dispositions, 
through  his  ministers,  Garcilasso  de  la  Vega  and 
Alonso  de  Silva.  The  latter  had  quitted  the  French 
court  on  its  entrance  into  Italy,  and  withdrawn  to 
Genoa.  From  this  point  he  opened  a  correspondence 
with  Lodovico  Sforza,  who  now  began  to  understand 
that  he  had  brought  a  terrible  engine  into  play,  the 
movements  of  which,  however  mischievous  to  himself, 
were  beyond  his  strength  to  control.  Silva  endeav- 
ored to  inflame  still  further  his  jealousy  of  the  French, 
who  had  already  given  him  many  serious  causes  of  dis- 
gust, and,  in  order  to  detach  him  more  effectually  from 
Charles's  interests,  encouraged  him  with  the  hope  of 
forming  a  matrimonial  alliance  for  his  son  with  one  of 
the  infantas  of  Spain.  At  the  same  time,  he  used  every 
effort  to  bring  about  a  co-operation  between  the  duke 
and  the  republic  of  Venice,  tnus  opening  the  way 


3S  Guicciardini  speaks  of  the  name  of  "  cannon,"  which  the  French 
give  to  their  pieces,  as  a  novelty  at  that  time  in  Italy.  Istoria,  pp.  45,  46, 

3*  Giovio,  Hist,  siii  Temporis,  lib.  2,  p.  42. — Machiavelli,  Arte  dclla 
Gucrra,  lib.  7. 


EXPEDITION  OF  CHARLES   VIII. 


2^1 


to  the  celebrated  league  which  was  concluded  in  the 
following  year.'' 

The  Roman  pontiff  had  lost  no  time,  after  the  ap- 
pearance of  the  French  army  in  Italy,  in  pressing  the 
Spanish  court  to  fulfil  its  engagements.  He  endeav- 
ored to  propitiate  the  good  will  of  the  sovereigns  by 
several  important  concessions.  He  granted  to  them 
and  their  successors  the  iercias,  or  two -ninths  of 
the  tithes,  throughout  the  dominions  of  Castile;  an 
impost  still  forming  part  of  the  regular  revenue  of  the 
crown.'*  He  caused  bulls  of  crusade  to  be  promul- 
gated throughout  Spain,  granting  at  the  same  time  a 
tenth  of  the  ecclesiastical  rents,  with  the  understanding 
that  the  proceeds  should  be  devoted  to  the  protection 
of  the  Holy  See.  Towards  the  close  of  this  year,  1494, 
or  the  beginning  of  the  following,  he  conferred  the 
title  of  Catholic  on  the  Spanish  sovereigns,  in  consid- 
eration, as  is  stated,  of  their  eminent  virtues,  their  zeal 
in  defence  of  the  true  faith  and  the  apostolic  see,  their 
reformation  of  conventual  discipline,  their  subjugation 
of  the  Moors  of  Granada,  and  the  purification  of  their 
dominions  from  the  Jewish  heresy.  This  orthodox 
title,  which  still  continues  to  be  the  jewel  most  prized 
in  the  Spanish  crown,  has  been  appropriated  in  a  pccu- 

37  Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  lib.  i,  cap.  35. — Alonso  de  Silva 
acquitted  himself  to  the  entire  satisfaction  of  the  sovereigns  in  his  dif- 
ficult mission.  He  was  subsequently  sent  on  various  others  to  the  dif- 
ferent Italian  courts,  and  uniformly  sustained  his  reputation  for  ability 
and  prudence.  He  did  not  live  to  be  old.  Oviedo,  Quincuagenas, 
MS.,  bat.  I,  quinc.  4. 

38  Mariana,  Hist,  de  Espana,  torn.  ii.  lib.  26,  cap.  6. — Salazar  de 
Mendoza,  Monarquia,  lib.  3,  cap.  14. — This  branch  of  tlie  revenue 
yields  at  the  present  day,  according  to  Laborde,  about  6,000,000  reals, 
or  1,500,000  francs.     Itineraire,  torn.  vi.  p.  51. 


284 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


liar  manner  to  Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  who  are  univer- 
sally recognized  in  history  as  Los  Reyes  Catolicos.^ 

Ferdinand  was  too  sensible  of  the  peril  to  which  the 
occupation  of  Naples  by  the  French  would  expose  his 
own  interests,  to  require  any  stimulant  to  action  from 
the  Roman  pontiff.  Naval  preparations  had  been 
going  forward  during  the  summer,  in  the  ports  of 
Galicia  and  Guipuscoa.  A  considerable  armament 
was  made  ready  for  sea  by  the  latter  part  of  December, 
at  Alicant,  and  placed  under  the  command  of  Galceran 
de  Requesens,  count  of  Trevento.  The  land-forces 
were  intrusted  to  Gonsalvo  de  Cordova,  better  known 
in  history  as  the  Great  Captain.     Instructions  were  at 

39  Zurita,  Abarca,  and  other  Spanish  historians  fix  the  date  of  Alex- 
ander's grant  at  the  close  of  1496.  (Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  lib.  2, 
cap.  40. — Reyes  de  Aragon,  rey  30,  cap.  9.)  Martyr  notices  it  with 
great  particularity  as  already  conferred,  in  a  letter  of  February,  1495. 
(Opus  Epist.,  epist.  157.)  The  pope,  according  to  Comines,  designed 
to  compliment  Ferdinand  and  Isabella  for  their  conquest  of  Granada, 
by  transferring  to  them  the  title  of  Most  Christian,  hitherto  enjoyed  by 
the  kings  of  France.  He  had  even  gone  so  far  as  to  address  them 
thus  in  more  than  one  of  his  briefs.  This  produced  a  remonstrance 
from  a  number  of  the  cardinals ;  which  led  him  to  substitute  the  title 
of  Most  Catholic.  The  epithet  of  Catholic  was  not  new  in  the  royal 
house  of  Castile,  nor  indeed  of  Aragon ;  having  been  given  to  the  As- 
turian  prince  Alfonso  I.  about  the  middle  of  the  eighth,  and  to  Pedro 
H.  of  Aragon  at  the  beginning  of  the  thirteenth  century.  I  will  re- 
mark, in  conclusion,  that  although  the  phrase  Los  Reyes  Caidlicos,  as 
applied  to  a  female  equally  with  a  male,  would  have  a  whimsical  ap- 
pearance literally  translated  into  English,  it  is  perfectly  consonant  to 
the  Spanish  idiom,  which  requires  that  all  words  having  reference 
to  both  a  masculine  and  a  feminine  noun  should  be  expressed  in  the 
former  gender.  So  also  in  the  ancient  languages :  *H/zev  rvpavvoi,  says 
Queen  Hecuba  (Euripides,  TPJ2IAA.  v.  474).  But  it  is  clearly  incor- 
rect to  render  Los  Reyes  Catblicos,  as  usually  done  by  English  writers, 
by  the  corresponding  term  of  "  Catholic  kings." 


EXPEDITION  OF  CHARLES   VIII. 


285 


the  same  sent  to  the  viceroy  of  Sicily  to  provide  for 
the  security  of  that  island,  and  to  hold  himself  in 
readiness  to  act  in  concert  with  the  Spanish  fleet.*' 

Ferdinand,  however,  determined  to  send  one  more 
embassy  to  Charles  the  Eighth,  before  coming  to  an 
open  rupture  with  him.  He  selected  for  this  mission 
Juan  de  Albion  and  Antonio  de  Fonseca,  brother  of 
the  bishop  of  that  name,  whom  we  have  already  no- 
ticed as  superintendent  of  the  Indian  department.  The 
two  envoys  reached  Rome,  January  28th,  1495,  ^^ 
same  day  on  which  Charles  set  out  on  his  march  for 
Naples.  They  followed  the  army,  and  on  arriving  at 
Velletri,  about  twenty  miles  from  the  capital,  were 
admitted  to  an  audience  by  the  monarch,  who  received 
them  in  the  presence  of  his  officers.  The  ambassadors 
freely  enumerated  the  various  causes  of  complaint 
entertained  by  their  master  against  the  French  king : 
the  insult  offered  to  him  in  the  person  of  his  minister 
Alonso  de  Silva;  the  contumelious  treatment  of  the 
pope,  and  forcible  occupation  of  the  fortresses  and 
estates  of  the  church  ;  and  finally  the  enterprise  against 
Naples,  the  claims  to  which,  as  a  papal  fief,  could  of 
right  be  determined  in  no  other  way  than  by  the  arbi- 
tration of  the  pontiff  himself.  Should  King  Charles 
consent  to  accept  this  arbitration,  they  tendered  the 
good  offices  of  their  master  as  mediator  b'  *ween  the 
parties ;  should  he  decline  it,  however,  the  king  of 
Spain  stood  absolved  from  all  further  obligations  of 
amity  with  him,  by  the  terms  of  the  treaty  of  Barce- 

♦>  Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  cap.  41. — Quintana,  Vidas  de 
Espaftoles  c^lebres  (Madrid,  1807,  1830),  torn.  i.  p.  222. — Carbajal, 
Anales,  MS.,  ano  1495. 


386 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


lona,  which  expressly  recognized  his  right  to  interfere 
in  defence  of  the  church.** 

Charles,  who  could  not  dissemble  his  indignation 
during  this  discourse,  retorted  with  great  acrimony, 
when  it  was  concluded,  on  the  conduct  of  Ferdinand, 
which  he  stigmatized  as  perfidious,  accusing  him,  at  the 
same  time,  of  a  deliberate  design  to  circumvent  him, 
by  introducing  into  their  treaty  the  clause  respecting 
the  pope.  As  to  the  expedition  against  Naples,  he  had 
now  gone  too  far  to  recede;  and  it  would  be  soon 
enough  to  canvass  the  question  of  right,  when  he  had 
got  possession  of  it.  His  courtiers,  at  the  same  time, 
with  the  impetuosity  of  their  nation,  heightened  by  the 
insolence  of  success,  told  the  envoys  that  they  knew 
well  enough  how  to  defend  their  rights  with  their  arms, 
and  that  King  Ferdinand  would  find  the  French  chiv- 
alry enemies  of  quite  another  sort  from  the  holiday 
tilters  of  Granada. 

These  taunts  led  to  mutual  recrimination,  until  at 
length  Fonseca,  though  naturally  a  sedate  person,  was 
so  far  transported  with  anger  that  he  exclaimed,  '*  The 
issue,  then,  must  be  left  to  God, — arms  must  decide 
it;"  and,  producing  the  original  treaty,  bearing  the 
signatures  of  the  two  monarchs,  he  tore  it  in  pieces 
before  the  eyes  of  Charles  and  Lis  court.  At  the  same 
time  he  commanded  two  Spanish  knights  who  served 
in  the  French  army  to  withdraw  from  it,  under  pain  of 
incurring  the  penalties  of  treason.  The  French  cava- 
liers were  so  much  incensed  by  this  audacious  action 


41  Bernaldez,  Reyes  Cat61icos,  MS.,  cap.  138. — Sismondi,  R^pub- 
liques  Italiennes,  torn.  xii.  pp.  192-194. — Garibay,  Compendio,  lib.  19, 
cap.  4. 


EXPEDITION  OF  CHARLES   VIII. 


287 


that  they  would  have  seized  the  envoys,  and,  in  all 
probability,  offered  violence  to  their  persons,  but  for  the 
interposition  of  Charles,  who  with  more  coolness  caused 
them  to  be  conducted  from  his  presence  and  sent  back 
under  a  safe  escort  to  Rome.  Such  are  the  circum- 
stances reported  by  the  French  and  Italian  writers  of 
this  remarkable  interview.  They  were  not  aware  that 
the  dramatic  exhibition,  as  far  as  the  ambassadors  were 
concerned,  was  all  previously  concerted  before  their 
departure  from  Spain.** 

Charles  pressed  forward  on  his  march  without  further 
delay.  Alfonso  the  Second,  losing  his  confidence  and 
martial  courage,  the  only  virtues  that  he  possessed,  at 
the  crisis  when  they  were  most  demanded,  had  precipi- 
tately abandoned  his  kingdom  while  the  French  were 
at  Rome,  and  taken  refuge  in  Sicily,  where  he  formally 
abdicated  the  crown  in  favor  of  his  son,  Ferdinand  the 
Second.  This  prince,  then  twenty-five  years  of  age, 
whose  amiable  manners  were  rendered  still  more  at- 
tractive by  contrast  with  the  ferocious  temper  of  his 
father,  was  possessed  of  talent  and  energy  competent  to 
the  present  emergency,  had  he  been  sustained  by  his  sub- 
jects.   But  the  latter,  besides  being  struck  with  the  same 

42  Oviedo,  Quincuagenas,  MS.,  bat.  i,  quinc.  3,  dial.  43. — Zurita, 
Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  lib.  i,  cap.  43. — Bernaldez,  Reyes  Catolicos, 
MS.,  cap.  138. — Giovio,  Hist,  sui  Temporis,  lib.  2,  p.  46. — Lanuza, 
Historias,  torn.  i.  lib.  i,  cap.  6. — This  appears  from  a  letter  of  Martyr's, 
dated  three  months  before  the  interview  ;  in  which  he  says,  "  Antonius 
Fonseca,  vir  equestris  ordinis,  et  armis  clanie  destinatus  est  orator, 
qui  eum  moneat,  ne,  priusquam  de  jure  inter  ipsum  et  Alfonsum  regem 
Neapolitanum  decematur,  ulterius  procedat.  Fert  in  mandatis  Anto- 
nius Fonseca,  ut  Carolo  capitulum  id  sonans  ostendat,  anteque  ipsius 
oculos  (si  detrectaverit)  pacti  veteris  chirographum  laceret,  atque 
indicat  inimicitias."     Opus  Epist.,  epist.  144. 


288 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


panic  which  had  paralyzed  the  other  people  of  Italy, 
had  too  little  interest  in  the  government  to  be  willing 
to  hazard  much  in  its  defence.  A  change  of  dynasty 
was  only  a  change  of  masters,  by  which  they  had  little 
either  to  gain  or  to  lose.  Though  favorably  inclined 
to  Ferdinand,  they  refused  to  stand  by  him  in  his  peril- 
ous extremity.  They  gave  way  in  every  direction,  as 
the  French  advanced,  rendering  hopeless  every  attempt 
of  their  spirited  young  monarch  to  rally  them,  till  at 
length  no  alternative  was  left  but  to  abandon  his  do- 
minions to  the  enemy  without  striking  a  blow  in  their 
defence.  He  withdrew  to  the  neighboring  island  of 
Ischia,  whence  he  soon  after  passed  into  Sicily,  and 
occupied  himself  there  in  collecting  the  fragments  of 
his  party,  until  the  time  should  arrive  for  more  decisive 
action. *3 

Charles  the  Eighth  made  his  entrance  into  Naples 
at  the  head  of  his  legions,  February  2 2d,  1495,  having 
traversed  this  whole  extent  of  hostile  territory  in  less 
time  than  would  be  occupied  by  a  fashionable  tourist 
of  the  present  day.  The  object  of  his  expedition  was 
now  achieved.  He  seemed  to  have  reached  the  con- 
summation of  his  wishes ;  and,  although  he  assumed 
the  titles  of  King  of  Sicily  and  of  Jerusalem,  and 
affected  the  state  and  authority  of  Emperor,  he  took 
no  measures  for  prosecuting  his  chimerical  enterprise 
further.  He  even  neglected  to  provide  for  the  security 
of  his  present  conquest,  and,  without  bestowing  a 
thought  on  the  government   of  his  new  dominions, 

43  Comines,  M^moires,  liv.  7,  chap.  16.  — Villenei've,  M^moires, 
apud  Petitot,  Collection  des  Memoires,  torn.  xii.  p.  260. — Ammirato, 
Istorie  Florentine,  torn.  iii.  lib.  26. — Summonte,  Hist,  di  Napoli,  torn, 
iii.  lib.  6,  cap.  i,  2. 


EXPEDITION  OF  CHARLES   VIII. 


289 


resigned  himself  to  the  licentious  and  effeminate  pleas- 
ures so  congenial  with  the  soft  voluptuousness  of  the 
climate  and  his  own  character.** 

While  Charles  was  thus  wasting  his  time  and  resources 
in  frivolous  amusements,  a  dark  storm  was  gathering  in 
the  north.  There  was  not  a  state  through  which  he 
had  passed,  however  friendly  to  his  cause,  which  had 
not  complaints  to  make  of  his  insolence,  his  breach  of 
faith,  his  infringement  of  their  rights,  and  his  exorbi- 
tant exactions.  His  impolitic  treatment  of^forza  had 
long  since  alienated  that  wily  and  restless  politician, 
and  raised  suspicions  in  his  mind  of  Charles's  designs 
against  his  own  duchy  of  Milan.  The  emperor  elect, 
Maximilian,  whom  the  French  king  thought  to  have 
bound  to  his  interests  by  the  treaty  of  Senlis,  took 
umbrage  at  his  assumption  of  the  imperial  title  and 
dignity.  The  Spanish  ambassadors,  Garcilasso  de  la 
Vega,  and  his  brother,  Lorenzo  Suarez,  the  latter  of 
whom  resided  at  Venice,  were  indefatigable  in  stimu- 
lating the  spirit  of  discontent.  Suarez,  in  particular, 
used  every  effort  to  secure  the  co-operation  of  Venice, 
representing  to  the  government,  in  the  most  urgent 
terms,  the  necessity  of  general  concert  and  instant 
action  among  the  great  powers  of  Italy,  if  they  would 
preserve  their  own  liberties.*' 

Venice,  from  its  remote  position,  seemed  to  afford 

<4  Giovio,  Hist,  sui  Temporis,  lib.  2,  p.  55. — Giannone,  Istoria  di 
Napoli,  lib.  29,  cap.  1,  2. — Andre  de  la  Vigne,  Histoire  de  Charles 
VIII.  (Paris,  1617),  p.  201. 

4S  Giovio,  Hist,  sui  Temporis,  lib.  2,  p.  56. — Guicciardini,  Istoria, 
torn.  i.  pp.  86,  87. — Bembo,  Isto.-ia  Viniziana,  torn.  i.  lib.  2,  p.  120. 
—  Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  lib.  2,  chap.  3,  5.  —  Comines, 
Menioires,  liv.  7,  chap.  19. 

Vol..  II. — 19  N 


390 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


the  best  point  for  coolly  contemplating  the  general 
interests  of  Italy.  Envoys  of  the  different  European 
powers  were  assembled  there,  as  if  by  common  consent, 
with  the  view  of  concerting  some  scheme  of  operation 
for  their  mutual  good.  The  conferences  were  con- 
ducted by  night,  and  with  such  secrecy  as  to  elude  for 
some  time  the  vigilant  eye  of  Comines,  the  sagacious 
minister  of  Charles,  then  resident  at  the  capital.  The 
result  was  the  celebrated  league  of  Venice.  It  was 
signed  the  last  day  of  March,  1495,  on  the  p.  ,t  of 
Spain,  Austria,  Rome,  Milan,  and  the  Venetian  repub- 
lic. The  ostensible  object  of  the  treaty,  which  was 
to  last  twenty-five  years,  was  the  preservation  of  the 
estates  and  rights  of  the  confederates,  especially  of 
the  Roman  see.  A  large  force,  amounting  in  ail  to 
thirty-four  thousand  horse  and  twenty  thousand  foot, 
was  to  be  assessed  in  stipulated  p.  (/portions  on  each 
of  the  contracting  parties.  The  secret  articles  of  the 
treaty,  however,  went  much  further,  providing  a  for- 
midable plan  of  offensive  operations.  It  was  agreed 
in  these  that  King  Ferdinand  should  employ  the  Span- 
ish armament,  now  arrived  in  Sicily,  in  re-establishing 
his  kinsman  on  the  throne  of  Naples ;  that  a  Venetian 
fleet,  of  forty  galleys,  should  attack  the  French  posi- 
tions on  the  Neapolitan  co^ists ;  that  the  duke  of  Milan 
should  expel  the  French  from  Asti,  and  blockade  the 
passes  of  the  Alps,  so  as  to  intercept  the  passage  of 
further  reinforcements;  and  that  the  emperor  and  the 
king  of  Spain  should  invade  the  French  frontiers,  and 
their  expenses  be  defrayed  by  subsidies  from  the  allies.^ 

<*  Guicciardini,  Istoria,  lorn.  i.  lib.  2,  p.  88. — Comines,  M6moire», 
Uv.  7,  chap.  20. — Betubo,  Istoria  Viniziana,  torn.  i.  lib.  2,  pp.  122,  123. 


EXPEDITION  OF  CHARLES    VIII. 


291 


Such  were  the  terms  of  this  treaty,  which  may  be 
regarded  as  forming  an  era  in  modern  political  his- 
tory, since  it  exhibits  the  first  example  of  those  exten- 
sive combinations  among  European  princes,  for  mutual 
defence,  which  afterwards  became  so  frequent.  It 
shared  the  fate  of  many  other  coalitions,  where  the 
name  and  authority  of  the  whole  have  been  made  sub- 
servient to  the  interests  of  some  one  of  the  parties, 
more  powerful  or  more  cunning  than  the  rest. 

The  intelligence  of  the  new  treaty  diffused  general 
joy  throughout  Italy.  In  Venice,  in  particular,  it  was 
greeted  withy?/«,  illuminations,  and  the  most  emphatic 
public  rejoicing,  under  the  very  eyes  of  the  French  min- 
ister, who  was  compelled  to  witness  this  unequivocal 
testimony  of  the  detestation  in  which  his  countrymen 
were  held.^'     The  tidings  fell  heavily  on  the  ears  of  the 

— Daru,  Hist,  de  Venise,  torn.  iii.  pp.  255,  256. — Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey 
Hernando,  lib.  2,  cap.  5. 

47  Comines,  Mdmoires,  p.  96. — Comines  takes  great  credit  to  him- 
self for  his  perspicacity  in  detecting  the  secret  negotiations  carried  on 
at  Venice  against  his  master.  According  to  Bembo,  however,  the 
afTair  was  managed  with  such  profound  caution  as  to  escape  his  notice 
until  it  was  officially  announced  by  the  doge  himself;  when  he  was  so 
much  astounded  by  the  intelligence  that  he  was  obliged  to  ask  the 
secretary  of  the  senate,  who  accompanied  him  home,  the  particulars 
of  what  the  doge  had  said,  as  his  ideas  were  so  confused  at  the  time 
that  he  had  not  perfectly  comprehended  it.  Istoria  Viniziana,  lib.  2, 
pp.  128,  129.* 


•  [The  account  given  by  Bembo  is  based  apparently  on  that  of  the 
contemporary  Venetian  diarist  Malipiero,  whose  Annali  Vencti  have 
been  published  in  the  Archivio  storico  Italiano,  torn.  viii.  But  the 
veracity  of  Comines  in  this,  as  in  other  cases  in  which  it  has  been 
hastily  impugned,  can  be  established  on  the  highest  possible  authority. 
The  minutes  of  the  Venetian  senate  at  this  period  are  still  preserved 
bi  the  so-called  "  Secret  Archives,"  and  it  is  there  recorded  that  on  the 


apa 


ITALIAN  WARS, 


French  in  Naples.  It  dispelled  the  dream  of  idle  dis- 
sipation in  which  they  were  dissolved.  They  felt  little 
concern,  indeed,  on  the  score  of  their  Italian  enemies, 
whom  their  easy  victories  taught  them  to  regard  with 
the  same  insolent  contempt  that  the  paladins  of  romance 
are  made  to  feel  for  the  unknightly  rabble,  myriads  of 
whom  they  could  overturn  with  a  single  lance.  But 
they  felt  serious  alarm  as  they  beheld  the  storm  of  war 
gathering  from  other  quarters, — from  Spain  and  Ger- 

30th  of  March,  the  day  be/ore  the  treaty  was  signed,  the  French  ambas- 
sador/r«*«/«frf  Amj^^  before  the  senate  and  urged  the  inexpediency 
of  the  league, — "dimostrava  I'inutilitk  della  lega."  See  Romanin, 
Storia  documentata  di  Venezia,  torn.  v.  (Venezia,  1856).  His  con- 
sternation when  informed,  in  the  public  audience  to  which  he  was 
summoned  two  days  later,  that  the  treaty  had  been  concluded  on  the 
previous  evening,  is  admitted  by  himself.  It  proceeded  not  from  any 
previous  ignorance  of  the  negotiations,  but  from  a  natural  inference 
that  the  preparations  to  give  effect  to  the  agreement  were  in  a  more 
advanced  state  than  was  actually  the  case,  and  from  consequent  alarm 
for  the  safety  of  the  king.  ("  J'avoye  le  coeur  serri  et  estoye  en  grant 
doubte  de  la  personne  du  Roy  et  de  toute  sa  compaignie,  et  cuydoye 
leur  cas  plus  prest  qu'il  n'estoit.")  It  would  have  been  strange  indeed 
if  so  astute  a  diplomatist  had  observed  the  extraordinary  conflux  of 
envoys  at  Venice  and  found  himself  excluded  from  their  conclaves, 
without,  as  Bembo  pretends,  "  having  the  least  suspicion  of  what  was 
going  on."  The  ignorance  was  on  the  side  of  the  diarists,  who  knew 
only  of  the  public  audience  to  which  Comines  was  summoned,  not  of 
the  previous  private  one  of  his  own  seeking.  The  fragments  which 
have  been  preserved  of  his  correspondence  at  this  period,  and  two  letters 
of  the  duke  of  Orleans  to  the  duke  of  Bourbon,  attest  his  activity  in 
gathering  information  and  communicating  it  to  his  master,  besides 
confirming  particulars  mentioned  in  his  memoirs.  (See  Mile.  Dupont's 
edition,  torn,  iii.,  preuves.)  Nor  is  it  just  to  say  that  he  "  takes  great 
credit  to  himself  for  his  perspicacity  in  detecting  the  secret  negotia- 
tions." He  merely  tells  us  that  he  had  good  means  of  procuring 
information,  which  he  paid  for,  and  he  says  that  tlie  king  received 
similar  warnings  from  his  agents  at  Rome  and  Milan. — Ed.] 


EXPEDITION  OF  CHARLES   VI If. 


293 


many,  in  defiance  of  the  treaties  by  which  they  had 
hoped  to  secure  the  neutrality  of  those  powers.  Charles 
saw  the  necessity  of  instant  action.  Two  courses  pre- 
sented themselves ;  either  to  strengthen  himself  in  his 
new  conquests  and  prepare  to  maintain  them  until  he 
could  receive  fresh  reinforcements  from  home,  or  to 
abandon  them  altogether  and  retreat  across  the  Alps 
before  the  allies  could  muster  in  sufficient  strength  to 
oppose  him.  With  the  indiscretion  characteristic  of 
his  whole  enterprise,  he  embraced  a  middle  course,  and 
lost  the  advantages  which  would  have  resulted  from  the 
exclusive  adoption  of  either. 


The  principal  light  by  which  we  are  to  be  guided  through  the 
remainder  of  this  history  is  the  Aragonese  annalist,  Zurita,  whose 
great  work,  although  less  known  abroad  than  those  of  some  more 
recent  Castilian  writers,  sustains  a  reputation  at  home  unsurpassed  by 
any  other  in  the  great,  substantial  qualities  of  an  historian.  The  notice 
of  his  life  and  writings  has  been  swelled  into  a  bulky  quarto  by  Dr. 
Diego  Dormer,  in  a  work  entitled  "  Progressos  de  la  Historia  en  el 
Reyno  de  Aragon.  Zaragoza,  1680;"  from  which  I  extract  a  few 
particulars. 

Ger6nimo  Zurita,  descended  from  an  ancient  and  noble  family,  was 
bom  at  Saragossa,  December  4th,  1512.  He  was  matriculated  at  an 
early  age  in  the  university  of  Alcald.  He  there  made  extraordinary 
proficiency,  under  the  immediate  instruction  of  the  learned  Nui^ez  de 
Guzman,  commonly  called  EI  Pinciano.  He  became  familiar  with  the 
ancient  and  a  variety  of  modem  tongues,  and  attracted  particular 
attention  by  the  purity  and  elegance  of  his  Latinity.  His  personal 
merits,  and  his  father's  influence,  recommended  him,  soon  after  quit- 
ting the  university,  to  the  notice  of  the  emperor  Charles  V.  He  was 
consulted  and  emplo)  cU  in  affairs  of  public  importance,  and  subse- 
quently raised  to  several  posts  of  honor,  attesting  the  entire  confidence 
reposed  in  his  integrity  and  abilities.  His  most  honorable  appoint* 
ment,  however,  was  that  of  national  historiographer. 


\r 


294 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


In  1547,  an  act  passed  the  cortes  general  of  Aragon,  providing  foi 
the  office  of  national  chronicler,  with  a  fixed  salary,  whose  duty  it 
should  be  to  compile,  from  authentic  sources,  a  faithful  history  of  the 
monarchy.  The  talents  and  eminent  qualifications  of  Zurita  recom- 
mended him  to  tliis  post,  and  he  was  raised  to  it  by  the  unanimous 
consent  of  the  legislature,  in  the  following  year,  1548.  From  this  time 
he  conscientiously  devoted  himself  to  the  execution  of  his  great  task. 
He  visited  every  part  of  his  own  country,  as  well  as  Sicily  and  Italy, 
for  the  purpose  of  collecting  materials.  The  public  archives,  and  every 
accessible  source  of  information,  were  freely  thrown  open  to  his  inspec- 
tion by  order  of  the  government ;  and  he  returned  from  his  literary 
pilgrimage  with  a  large  accumulation  of  rare  and  original  documents. 
The  first  portion  of  his  annals  was  published  at  Saragossa,  in  two  vol- 
umes folio,  156Z  The  work  was  not  completed  until  nearly  twenty 
years  later,  and  the  last  two  volumes  were  printed  under  his  own  eye 
at  S  iragossa,  in  1580,  a  few  months  only  before  his  death.  This  edition, 
being  one  of  those  used  in  the  present  history,  is  in  large  folio,  fairly 
executed,  with  double  columns  on  the  page,  in  the  fashion  of  most  of 
the  ancient  Spanish  historians.  The  whole  work  was  again  published, 
as  before,  at  the  expense  of  the  state,  in  1585,  by  his  son,  amended 
and  somewhat  enlarged,  from  the  manuscripts  left  by  his  father. 
Bouterwek  has  fallen  into  the  error  of  supposing  that  no  edition  of 
Zurita's  Annals  appeared  till  after  the  reign  of  Philip  II.,  who  died  in 
1592.     (Geschichte  der  Poesie  und  Beredsamkeit,  Band  iii.  S.  319.) 

No  incidents  worthy  of  note  seem  to  have  broken  the  peaceful  tenor 
of  Zurita's  life  ;  which  he  terminated  at  Saragossa,  in  the  sixty-eighth 
year  of  his  age,  in  the  monastery  of  Santa  Engracia,  to  which  he  had 
retired  during  a  temporary  residence  in  the  city,  to  superintend  the 
publication  of  his  Annals.  His  rich  collection  of  books  and  manu- 
scripts was  left  to  the  Carthusian  monastery  of  Aula  Dei ;  but,  from 
accident  or  neglect,  the  greater  part  have  long  since  perished.  His 
remains  were  interred  in  the  convent  where  he  died,  and  a  monument, 
bearing  a  modest  inscription,  was  erected  over  them  by  his  son. 

The  best  monument  of  Zurita,  however,  is  his  Annals.  They  take 
up  the  history  of  Aragon  from  its  first  rise  after  the  Arabic  conquest, 
and  continue  it  to  the  death  of  Ferdinand  the  Catholic.  The  reign 
of  this  prince,  as  possessing  the  largest  interest  and  importance,  is 
expanded  into  two  volumes  folio ;  being  one-third  of  the  whole  work. 

The  minuteness  of  Zurita's  investigations  has  laid  him  open  to  the 
charge  of  prolixity,  especially  in  the  earlier  and  less  important  periods. 


EXPEDITION  OF  CHARLES   VIII. 


295 


It  should  be  remembered,  however,  that  his  work  was  to  be  the  great 
national  repository  of  facts,  interesting  to  his  own  countrymen,  but 
which,  from  difficulty  of  access  to  authentic  sources,  could  never  before 
be  fully  exhibited  to  their  inspection.  But,  whatever  be  thought  of 
his  redundancy,  in  this  or  the  subsequent  parts  of  his  narrative,  it  must 
be  admitted  that  he  has  uniformly  and  emphatically  directed  the  atten- 
tion of  the  reader  to  the  topics  most  worthy  of  it ;  sparing  no  pains  to 
illustrate  the  constitutional  antiquities  of  the  country,  and  to  trace  the 
gradual  formation  of  her  liberal  polity,  instead  of  wasting  his  strength 
on  mere  superficial  gossip,  like  most  of  the  chroniclers  of  the  period. 
There  is  no  Spanish  historian  less  swayed  by  party  or  religious  preju- 
dice, or  by  the  feeling  of  nationality,  which  is  so  apt  to  overflow  in  the 
loyal  effusions  of  the  Castilian  writers.  This  laudable  temperance, 
indeed,  has  brought  on  him  the  rebuke  of  more  than  one  of  his  patri« 
otic  countrymen.  There  is  a  sobriety  and  coolness  in  his  estimate  of 
historical  evidence,  equally  removed  from  temerity  on  the  one  hand, 
and  credulity  on  the  other ;  in  short,  his  whole  manner  is  that  of  a 
man  conversant  with  public  business  and  free  from  the  closet  pedantry 
which  too  often  characterizes  the  monkish  annalists.  The  greater  part 
of  his  life  was  passed  under  the  reign  of  Charles  V,,  when  the  spirit 
of  the  nation  was  not  yet  broken  by  arbitrary  power,  nor  debased  by 
the  melancholy  superstition  which  settled  on  it  under  his  successor ;  an 
age  in  which  the  memory  of  ancient  liberty  had  not  wholly  faded  away, 
and  when,  if  men  did  not  dare  express  all  they  thought,  they  at  least 
thought  with  a  degree  of  independence  which  gave  a  masculine  char- 
acter to  their  expression.  In  this,  as  well  as  in  the  liberality  of  his 
religious  sentiments,  he  may  be  compared  favorably  with  his  celebrated 
countryman  Mariana,  who,  educated  in  the  cloister,  and  at  a  period 
when  the  nation  was  schooled  to  maxims  of  despotism,  exhibits  few 
glimpses  of  the  sound  criticism  and  reflection  which  are  to  be  found 
in  the  writings  of  his  Aragonese  rival.  The  seductions  of  style,  how- 
ever, the  more  fastidious  selection  of  incidents,  in  short,  the  superior 
graces  of  narration,  have  given  a  wider  fame  to  the  former,  whose 
works  have  passed  into  most  of  the  cultivated  languages  of  Europe, 
while  those  of  Zurita  remain,  as  far  as  I  am  aware,  still  undisturbed  in 
the  vernacular. 


CHAPTER    II. 


ITALIAN  WARS. — RETREAT  OF  CHARLES  VIII. CAMPAIGNS 

OF  GONSALVO  DE  CORDOVA. — FINAL  EXPULSION  OF  THE 
FRENCH. 

1495-1496. 

Impolitic  Conduct  of  Charles. — He  plunders  the  Works  of  Art. — Gon- 
salvo  de  Cordova. — His  Brilliant  Qualities. — Raised  to  the  Italian 
Command. — Battle  of  Seminara. — Gonsalvo's  Successes. — Decline 
of  the  French. — He  receives  the  Title  of  Great  Captain. — Expulsion 
of  the  French  from  Italy. 

Charles  the  Eighth  might  have  found  abundant 
occupation,  during  his  brief  residence  at  Naples,  in 
placing  the  kingdom  in  a  proper  posture  of  defence, 
and  in  conciliating  the  good  will  of  the  inhabitants, 
without  which  he  could  scarcely  hope  to  maintain  him- 
self permanently  in  his  conquest.  So  far  from  this, 
however,  he  showed  the  utmost  aversion  to  business, 
wasting  his  hours,  as  has  been  already  noticed,  in  the 
most  frivolous  amusements.  He  treated  the  great 
feudal  aristocracy  of  the  country  with  utter  neglect ; 
rendering  himself  difficult  of  access,  and  lavishing  all 
dignities  and  emoluments  with  partial  prodigality  on 
his  French  subjects.  His  followers  disgusted  the  nation 
still  further  by  their  insolence  and  unbridled  licentious- 
ness. The  people  naturally  called  to  mind  the  virtues 
of  the  exiled  Ferdinand,  whose  temperate  rule  they 
contrasted  with  the  rash  and  rapacious  conduct  of  theii 

.        (296) 


CAMPAIGNS  OF  GONSALVO. 


297 


■  > 


, 


new  masters.  The  spirit  of  discontent  spread  more 
widely,  as  the  French  were  too  thinly  scattered  to 
enforce  subordination.  A  correspondence  was  entered 
into  with  Ferdinand  in  Sicily,  and  in  a  short  time 
several  of  the  most  considerable  cities  of  the  kingdom 
openly  avowed  their  allegiance  to  the  house  of  Aragon.* 
In  the  mean  time,  Charles  and  his  nobles,  satiated 
with  a  life  of  inactivity  and  pleasure,  and  feeling  that 
they  had  accomplished  the  great  object  of  the  expe- 
dition, began  to  look  with  longing  eyes  towards  their 
own  country.  Their  impatience  was  converted  into 
anxiety  on  receiving  tidings  of  the  coalition  mustering 
in  the  north.  Charles,  however,  took  care  to  secure 
to  himself  some  of  the  spoils  of  victory,  in  a  manner 
which  we  have  seen  practised  on  a  much  greater  scale 
by  his  countrymen  in  our  day.  He  collected  the 
various  works  of  art  with  which  Naples  was  adorned, 
precious  antiques,  sculptured  marble  and  alabaster, 
gates  of  bronze  curiously  wrought,  and  such  architec- 
tural ornaments  as  were  capable  of  transportation,  and 
caused  them  to  be  embarked  on  board  his  fleet  for  the 
south  of  France,  "endeavoring,"  says  the  Curate  of 
Los  Palacios,  "to  build  up  his  own  renown  on  the 
ruins  of  the  kings  of  Naples,  of  glorious  memory." 
His  vessels,  however,  did  not  reach  their  place  of  des- 
tination, but  were  captured  by  a  Biscayan  and  Genoese 
fleet  off  Pisa.' 

•  Comines,  Memoires,  liv.  7,  chap.  17. — Summonte,  Hist,  di  Napoli, 
torn.  iii.  lib.  6,  cap.  2. — Giannone,  Istoria  di  Napoli,  lib.  29,  cap.  2. 

»  Bernaldez,  Reyes  Catolicos,  MS.,  cap.  140-143.  —  Cicero,  in  his 
charges  against  Verres,  makes  a  remark  respecting  tlie  Greeks,  that 
may  well  apply  to  the  plundered  Italians  of  Charles  VIII. 's  day  and 
our  own:  "  Deinde  hie  ornatus,  hoec  opera,  atquc  artificia,  signa, 


298 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


I 

i 
I 


\ 

II 


11 
It 


Charles  had  entirely  failed  in  his  application  to 
Pope  Alexander  the  Sixth  for  a  recognition  of  his 
right  to  Naples  by  a  formal  act  of  investiture.'  He 
determined,  however,  to  go  through  the  ceremony  of 
a  coronation  ;  and,  on  the  12th  of  May,  he  made  his 
public  entrance  into  the  city,  arrayed  in  splendid  robes 
of  scarlet  and  ermine,  with  the  imperial  diadem  on  his 
head,  a  sceptre  in  one  hand,  and  a  globe,  the  symbol 
of  universal  sovereignty,  in  the  other  j  while  the  adu- 
latory populace  saluted  his  royal  ear  with  the  august 
title  of  Emperor.  After  the  conclusion  of  this  farce, 
he  made  preparations  for  his  instant  departure  from 
Naples.  On  the  20th  of  May  he  set  out  on  his  home- 
ward march,  at  the  head  of  one-half  of  his  army, 
amounting  in  all  to  not  more  than  nine  thousand 
fighting-men.  The  other  half  was  left  for  the  defence 
of  his  new  conquest.  This  arrangement  was  highly 
impolitic,  since  he  neither  took  with  him  enough 
to  cover  his  retreat,  nor  left  enough  to  secure  the 
preservation  of  Naples.* 

tabulae  pictae,  Groccos  homines  nimio  opere  delectant.  Itaque  ex 
illurum  querimoniis  intelligere  possumus  hnec  illis  acerbissima  videri, 
quae  nobis  forsitan  levia  et  contemnenda  esse  videantur.  Mill!  credite, 
judices,  cum  mullas  acceperint  per  hosce  annos  socii  atque  exterae 
nationes  calamitates  et  injurias.nullas  Graecr  homines  graviiis  tulerunt, 
nee  ferunt,  quhm  hujuscemodi  spoliationes  fanorum  atque  oppi- 
dorum." — Actio  ii.  lib.  4,  cap.  59. 

3  Summonte,  Hist,  di  Napoli,  torn.  iii.  lib.  6,  cap.  2. — According  to 
Giannone  (Istoria  di  Napoli,  lib.  29,  cap.  2),  he  did  obtain  the  investi- 
ture from  the  pope ;  but  this  statement  is  contradicted  by  several,  and 
confirmed  by  none,  of  the  authorities  I  have  consulted. 

4  Brant&me,  Hommes  iilustres,  CEuvres,  tom.  ii.  pp.  3-5. — Comines. 
Memoires,  liv.  8,  chap.  2. — The  particulars  of  the  coronation  are 
recorded  with  punctilious  precision  by  Andre  de  la  Vigne,  secretary  ol 


CAMPAIGNS  OF  GONSALVO. 


299 


It  is  not  necessary  to  follow  the  French  army  in  its 
retrograde  mcvement  through  Italy.  It  is  enough  to 
say  that  this  was  not  conducted  with  sufficient  despatch 
to  anticipate  the  junction  of  the  allied  forces,  who 
assembled  to  dispute  its  passage  on  the  banks  of  the 
Taro,  near  Fornovo.  An  action  was  there  fought,  in 
which  King  Charles,  at  the  head  of  his  loyal  chivalry, 
achieved  such  deeds  of  heroism  as  shed  a  lustre  over 
his  ill-concerted  enterprise,  and  which,  if  they  did  not 
gain  him  an  undisputed  victory,  secured  the  fruits  of 
it,  by  enabling  him  to  effect  his  retreat  without  further 
molestation.  At  Turin  he  entered  into  negotiation 
with  the  calculating  duke  of  Milan,  which  terminated 
in  the  treaty  of  Vercelli,  October  loth,  1495.  By  this 
treaty  Charles  obtained  no  other  advantage  than  that 
of  detaching  his  cunning  adversary  from  the  coalition. 
The  Venetians,  although  refusing  to  accede  to  it,  made 
no  opposition  to  any  arrangement  which  would  expe- 
dite the  removal  of  their  formidable  foe  beyond  the 
Alps.  This  was  speedily  accomplished  ;  and  Charles, 
yielding  to  his  own  impatience  and  that  of  his  nobles, 
recrossed  that  mountain  rampart  which  nature  has  so 
ineffectually  provided  for  the  security  of  Italy,  and 
reached  Grenoble  with  his  army  on  the  27th  of  the 
month.  Once  more  restored  to  his  own  dominions, 
the  young  monarch  abandoned  himself  without  reserve 
to  the  licentious  pleasures  to  which  he  was  passionately 
addicted,  forgetting  alike  his  dreams  of  ambition,  and 
the  brave  companions-in-arms  whom  he  had  deserted 

Queen  Anne.  (Hist,  de  Charles  VIII.,  p.  201.)  Daru  has  confounded 
this  farce  with  Charles's  original  entry  into  Naples  in  February.  Hist, 
de  Venise,  torn.  iii.  liv.  20,  p.  247. 


aem 


300 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


in  Italy.  Thus  ended  this  memorable  expedition, 
which,  though  crowned  witl.  complete  success,  was 
attended  with  no  other  permanent  result  to  its  authors 
than  that  of  opening  the  way  to  those  disastrous  wars 
which  wasted  the  resources  of  their  country  for  a  great 
part  of  the  sixteenth  century.^ 

Charles  the  Eighth  had  left  as  his  viceroy  in  Naples 
Gilbert  de  Bourbon,  duke  of  Montpensier,  a  prince  of 
the  blood,  and  a  brave  and  loyal  nobleman,  but  of 
slender  military  capacity,  and  so  fond  of  his  bed,  says 
Comines,  that  he  seldom  left  it  before  noon.  The 
command  of  the  forces  in  Calabria  was  intrusted  to  M. 
d'Aubigny,  a  Scottish  cavalier  of  the  house  of  Stuart, 
raised  by  Charles  to  the  dignity  of  grand  constable  of 
France.  He  was  so  much  esteemed  for  his  noble  and 
chivalrous  qualities  that  he  was  styled  by  the  annalists 
of  that  day,  says  Brantorae,  "grand  chevalier  sans 
reproche."  He  had  large  experience  in  military  mat- 
ters, and  was  reputed  one  of  the  best  officers  in  the 
French  service.  Besides  these  principal  commanders, 
there  were  others  of  subordinate  rank  stationed  at  the 
head  of  small  detachments  on  different  points  of  the 
kingdom,  and  especially  in  the  fortified  cities  along 
the  coasts.* 

Scarcely  had  Charles  the  Eighth  quitted   Naples, 

S  Villeneuve,  M^moires,  apud  Petitot,  Collection  de  Memoires,  torn, 
xiv.  pp.  262,  263. — Flassan,  Diplomatie  Fran9aise,  torn.  i.  pp,  267-269. 
—  Comines,  Memoires,  liv.  8,  chap.  10-12,  18.  — "  Les  conquetes," 
observes  Montesquieu,  "  sont  aisees  \  faire,  parce  qu'on  les  fait  avec 
toutes  ses  forces ;  elles  sont  difficiles  \  conserver,  parce  qu'on  ne  les 
defend  qu'avec  une  partie  de  ses  forces." — Grandeur  et  Decadence 
des  Romains,  chap.  4. 

*  Comines,  Memoires,  liv.  8,  chap,  i, — Brant6me,  Hommes  illustreS; 
torn.  ii.  p.  59. 


CAMPAIGNS  OF  GONSALVO. 


301 


when  his  rival,  Ferdinand,  who  had  already  ompleted 
'  .s  preparations  in  Sicily,  made  a  descent  on  the 
southern  extremity  of  Calabria.  He  was  supported  in 
this  by  the  Spanish  levies  under  the  admiral  Requesens, 
and  Gonsalvo  of  Cordova,  who  reached  Sicily  in  the 
month  of  May.  As  the  latter  of  these  commanders 
was  destined  to  act  a  most  conspicuous  part  in  the 
Italian  wars,  it  may  not  be  amiss  to  give  some  account 
of  his  early  life. 

Gonzalo  Fernandez  de  Cordova,  or  Aguilar,  as  he  is 
sometimes  styled  from  the  territorial  title  assumed  by 
his  branch  of  the  family,  was  born  at  Montilla,  in 
1453.  His  father  died  early,  leaving  two  sons,  Alonso 
de  Aguilar,  whose  name  occurs  in  some  of  the  most 
brilliant  passages  of  the  war  of  Granada,  and  Gon- 
salvo, three  years  younger  than  his  brother.  During 
the  troubled  reigns  of  John  the  Second  and  Henry  the 
Fourth,  the  city  of  Cordova  was  divided  by  the  feuds 
of  the  rival  families  of  Cabra  and  Aguilar ;  and  it  is 
reported  that  the  citizens  of  the  latter  faction,  after  the 
loss  of  their  natural  leader,  Gonsalvo's  father,  used  to 
testify  their  loyalty  to  his  house  by  bearing  the  infant 
children  along  with  them  in  their  rencontres:  thus 
Gonsalvo  may  be  said  to  have  been  literally  nursed 
amid  the  din  of  battle,' 

On  the  breaking  out  of  the  civil  wars,  the  two 
brothers  attached  themselves  to  the  fortunes  of  Alfonso 
and  Isabella.  S\  their  court,  the  young  Gonsalvo 
soon  attracted  attention  by  the  uncommon  beauty  of 
his  person,  his  polished  manners,  and  proficiency  in  all 

7  Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  lib.  2,  cap.  7. — Giovio,  Vita  Magni 
Gonsalvi,  lib.  i,  pp.  204,  205. 


302 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


knightly  exercises.  He  indulged  in  a  profuse  magnifi- 
cence in  his  apparel,  equipage,  and  general  style  of 
living;  a  circumstance  which,  accompanied  with  his 
brilliant  qualities,  gave  him  the  title  at  the  court  of 
el  principe  de  los  cavalleros,  the  prince  of  cavaliers. 
This  carelessness  of  expense,  indeed,  called  forth  more 
than  once  the  affectionate  remonstrance  of  his  brother 
Alonso,  who,  as  the  elder  son,  had  inherited  the  ma- 
yorazgo,  or  family  estate,  and  who  provided  liberally 
for  Gonsalvo's  support.  He  served  during  the  Portu- 
guese war  under  Alunso  de  Cardenas,  grand  master  of 
St.  Janes,  and  was  honored  with  the  public  commenda- 
tions of  his  general  for  his  signal  display  of  valor  at  the 
battle  of  Albuera ;  where,  it  was  remarked,  the  young 
hero  incurred  an  unnecessary  degree  of  personal  hazard 
by  the  ostentatious  splendor  of  his  armor.  Of  this 
commander,  and  of  the  count  of  Tendilla,  Gonsalvo 
always  spoke  with  the  greatest  deference,  acknowledg- 
ing that  he  had  learned  the  rudiments  of  war  from 
them.* 

The  long  war  of  Granada,  however,  was  the  great 
school  in  which  his  military  discipline  was  perfected. 
He  did  not,  it  is  true,  occupy  so  eminent  a  position  in 
these  campaigns  as  some  other  chiefs  of  riper  years  and 
more  enlarged  experience ;  but  on  various  occasions  he 
displayed  uncommon  proofs  both  of  address  and  valor. 
He  particularly  distinguished  himself  at  the  capture  of 
Tajara,  Illora,  and  Monte  Frio.  At  the  last  place,  he 
headed  the  scaling-party,  and  was  the  nrst  to  mount 
the  walls  in  the  face  of  the  enemy.    He  wellnigh  closed 

8  Pulgar,  Sumario  de  las  Hazanas  del  Gran  Capitan  (Madrid,  1834), 
p.  145. — Giovio,  Vita  Magni  Gonsalvi,  lib.  i,  pp.  205  et  seq. 


CAMPAIGNS  OF  GONSALVO. 


303 


his  career  in  a  midnight  skirmish  before  Granada,  which 
occurred  a  short  time  before  the  end  of  the  war.  In 
the  heat  of  the  struggle  his  horse  was  slain  ;  ond  Gon- 
salvo,  unable  to  extricate  himself  from  the  morass  in 
which  he  was  entangled,  would  have  perished,  but  fof" 
a  faithful  servant  of  the  family,  who  mounted  him  on 
his  own  horse,  briefly  commending  to  his  master  the 
care  of  his  wife  and  children.  Gonsalvo  escaped,  but 
his  brave  follower  paid  for  his  loyalty  with  his  life.  At 
the  conclusion  of  the  war,  he  was  selected,  together 
with  Ferdinand's  secretary  Zafra,  in  consequence  of  his 
plausible  address,  and  his  familiarity  with  the  Arabic, 
to  conduct  the  negotiation  with  the  Moorish  govern- 
ment. He  was  secretly  introduced  for  this  purpose  by 
night  into  Granada,  and  finally  succeeded  in  arranging 
the  terms  of  capitulation  with  the  unfortunate  AbdaU 
lah,  as  has  been  already  stated.  In  consideration  of 
his  various  services,  the  Spanish  sovereigns  granted  him 
a  pension  and  a  large  landed  estate  in  the  conquered 
territory.' 

After  the  war,  Gonsalvo  remained  with  the  court, 
and  his  high  reputation  and  brilliant  exterior  made 
him  one  of  the  most  distinguished  ornaments  of  the 
royal  circle.  His  manners  displayed  all  the  romantic 
gallantry  characteristic  of  the  age,  of  which  the  fol- 

9  Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  epist.  90. — Giovio,  Vita  Magni  Gon- 
salvi,  lib.  i,  pp.  211,  212. — Conde,  Dominacion  de  los  Arabes,  torn.  iii. 
cap.  42. — Quintana,  Espanoles  c^lebres,  torn.  i.  pp.  207-216. — Pulgar, 
Sumario,  p.  193. — Fiorian  has  given  circulntion  to  a  popular  error  by 
his  romance  of  "  Gonsalve  de  Cordoue,"  wh  \e  the  young  warrior  is 
made  to  play  a  part  he  is  by  no  means  entitled  to,  as  hero  of  the  Gra- 
nadine  war  Graver  writers,  who  cannot  lawfully  plead  the  privilege 
of  romancing,  have  committed  the  same  error.  See,  among  others, 
Varillas,  Politique  de  Ferdinand,  p.  3. 


3^4 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


lowing,  among  other  instances,  is  recorded.  The  queen 
accompanied  her  daughter  Joanna  on  board  the  fleet 
which  was  to  bear  her  to  Flanders,  the  country  of  her 
destined  husband.  After  bidding  adieu  to  the  infanta, 
Isabella  returned  in  her  boat  to  the  shore;  but  the 
waters  were  so  swollen  that  it  was  found  difficult  to 
make  good  a  footing  for  her  on  the  beach.  As  the 
sailors  were  preparing  to  drag  the  bark  higher  up  the 
strand,  Gonsalvo,  who  was  present,  and  dressed,  as  the 
Castilian  historians  are  careful  to  inform  us,  in  a  rich 
suit  of  brocade  and  crimson  velvet,  unwilling  that  the 
person  of  his  royal  mistress  should  be  profaned  by  the 
touch  of  such  rude  hands,  waded  into  the  water,  and 
bore  the  queen  in  his  arms  to  the  shore,  amid  the 
shouts  and  plaudits  of  the  spectators.  The  incident 
may  form  a  counterpart  to  the  well-known  anecdote  of 
Sir  Walter  Raleigh." 

Isabella's  long  and  intimate  acquaintance  with  Gon- 
salvo enabled  her  to  form  a  correct  estimate  of  his  great 
talents.  When  the  Italian  expedition  was  resolved  on, 
she  instantly  fixed  her  eyes  on  him  as  the  most  suitable 
person  to  conduct  it.  She  knew  that  he  possessed  the 
qualities  essential  to  success  in  a  new  and  difficult 
enterprise,  —  courage,  constancy,   singular  prudence, 

»  Giovio,  Vita  Magni  Gonsalvi,  p.  214. — Chrdnica  del  Gran  Capitan 
Gonzalo  Hernandez  de  Cordova  y  Aguilar  (Alcald  de  Henares,  1584), 
cap.  23. — Another  example  of  his  gallantry  occurred  during  the  Gra- 
nadine  war,  when  the  fire  of  Santa  Fe  had  consumed  the  royal  tent, 
with  the  greater  part  of  the  queen's  apparel  and  other  valuable  effects. 
Gonsalvo,  on  learning  the  disaster,  at  his  castle  of  Illora,  supplied  the 
queen  so  abundantly  from  the  magnificent  wardrobe  of  his  wife,  Doiia 
Maria  Manrique,  as  led  Isabella  pleasantly  to  remark  that  "  the  fire 
had  done  more  execution  in  his  quarters  than  in  her  own."  Pulgar, 
Sumario,  p.  187. 


CAMPAIGNS  OF  CONSALVO. 


305 


dexterity  in  negotiation,  and  inexhaustible  fertility  of 
resource.  She  ac  cordingly  recommended  him,  without 
hesitation,  to  her  husband,  as  the  commander  of  the 
Italian  army.  He  approved  her  choice,  although  it 
seems  to  have  caused  no  little  surprise  at  the  court, 
which,  notwithstanding  the  favor  in  which  Gonsalvo 
was  held  by  the  sovereigns,  was  not  prepared  to  see 
him  advanced  over  the  heads  of  veterans,  of  so  much 
riper  years  and  higher  military  renown  than  himself. 
The  event  proved  the  sagacity  of  Isabella." 

The  part  of  the  squadron  destined  to  convey  the 
new  general  to  Sicily  was  made  ready  for  sea  in  the 
spring  of  1495.  After  a  tempestuous  voyage,  he  reached 
Messina  on  the  24th  of  May.  He  found  that  Ferdi- 
nand of  Naples  had  already  begun  operations  in  Cala- 
bria, where  he  had  occupied  Reggio  with  the  assistance 
of  the  admiral  Requesens,  who  reached  Sicily  with  a 
part  of  the  armament  a  short  time  previous  to  Gon- 
salvo's  arrival.  The  whole  effective  force  of  the  Span- 
iards did  not  exceed  six  hundred  lances  and  fifteen 
hundred  foot,  besides  those  employed  in  the  fleet, 
amounting  to  about  three  thousand  five  hundred  moic. 
The  finances  of  Spain  had  been  too  freely  drained 
in  the  late  Moorish  war  to  authorize  any  extraordinary 
expenditure;  and  Ferdinand  designed  to  assist  his 
kinsman  rather  with  his  name  than  with  any  great 
accession  of  numbers.  Preparations,  however,  \vere 
going  forward  for  raising  additional  levies,  especially 
among  the  hardy  peasantry  of  the  Astarias  and  Galic-i, 


"  Giovio,  Vita  Magni  Gonsalvi,  p.  214. — Chronica  del  Gran  Capitan, 
cap.  33. 

Vol.  II. — 20 


3o6 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


on  which  the  war  of  Granada  had  fallen  less  heavily 
than  on  the  south." 

On  the  26th  of  May,  Gonsalvo  de  Cordova  crossed 
over  to  Reggio  in  Calabria,  where  a  plan  of  operations 
was  concerted  between  him  and  the  Neapolitan  mon- 
arch. Before  opening  the  campaign,  several  strong 
places  in  the  province,  which  owed  allegiance  to  the 
Aragonese  family,  were  placed  in  the  hands  of  the 
Spanish  general,  as  security  for  the  reimbursement  of 
expenses  incurred  by  his  government  in  the  war.  As 
Gonsalvo  placed  little  reliance  on  his  Calabrian  or 
Sicilian  recruits,  he  was  obliged  to  detach  a  considerable 
part  of  his  Spanish  forces  to  garrison  these  places. '^ 

"  Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  lib.  2,  cap.  7,  24. — Quintana, 
Espaftoles  c^lebres,  torn.  i.  p.  222. — Chrdnica  del  Gran  Capitan,  ubi 
supra. — Giovio,  in  his  biography  of  Gonsalvo,  estimates  these  forces 
at  5000  foot  and  600  horse,  which  last  in  his  History  he  raises  to  700. 
I  have  followed  Zurita,  as  presenting  the  more  probable  statement, 
and  as  generally  more  accurate  in  all  that  relates  to  his  own  nation. 
It  is  a  hopeless  task  to  attempt  to  reconcile  the  manifold  inaccuracies, 
contradictions,  and  discrepancies  which  perplex  the  narratives  of  the 
writers  on  both  sides,  in  everything  relating  to  numerical  estimates. 
The  difficulty  is  greatly  increased  by  the  extremely  vague  application 
of  the  term  lance,  as  we  meet  with  it  including  six,  four,  three,  or  even 
a  less  number  of  followers,  as  the  case  might  be. 

'3  Mariana,  Hist,  de  Espana,  torn.  ii.  lib.  26,  cap.  10. — Zurita,  Hist, 
del  Rey  Hernando,  lib.  2,  cap.  7. — The  occupation  of  these  places  by 
Gonsalvo  excited  the  pope's  jealousy  as  to  the  designs  of  the  Spanish 
sove.-eigns.  In  consequence  of  his  remonstrances,  the  Castilian  envoy, 
Garcilasso  de  la  Vega,  was  instructed  to  direct  Gonsalvo  that,  "  in  case 
any  inferior  places  had  been  since  put  into  his  hands,  he  should  restore 
them ;  if  they  were  of  importance,  however,  he  was  fii-st  to  confer  with 
his  own  government."  King  Ferdinand,  as  Abarca  assures  his  readers, 
"  was  unwilling  to  give  cause  of  complaint  to  any  one,  unless  he  were 
greatly  a  gainer  by  it."  Reyes  de  Aragon,  rey  30,  cap.  8.— Zurita, 
Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  torn.  v.  lib.  2,  cvp.  8, 


CAMPAIGNS  OF  GONSALVO. 


307 


The  presence  of  their  monarch  revived  the  dormant 
loyalty  of  his  Calabrian  subjects.  They  thronged  to 
his  standard,  till  at  length  he  found  himself  at  the 
head  of  six  thousand  men,  chiefly  composed  of  the 
raw  militia  of  the  country.  He  marched  at  once  with 
Gonsalvo  on  St.  Agatha,  which  opened  its  gates  with- 
out resistance.  He  then  directed  his  course  towards 
Seminara,  a  place  of  some  strength  about  eight  leagues 
from  Reggio.  On  his  way  he  cut  in  pieces  a  detach- 
ment of  French  on  its  march  to  reinforce  the  garrison 
there.  Seminara  imitated  the  example  of  St.  Agatha, 
and,  receiving  the  Neapolitan  army  without  opposition, 
unfurled  the  standard  of  Aragon  on  its  walls.  While 
this  was  going  forward,  Antonio  Grimani,  the  Venetian 
admiral,  scoured  the  eastern  coasts  of  the  kingdom 
with  a  fleet  of  four-and-twenty  galleys,  and,  attacking 
the  strong  town  of  Monopoli,  in  the  possession  of  the 
French,  put  the  greater  part  of  the  garrison  to  the 
sword. 

D'Aubigny,  who  lay  at  this  time  with  an  inconsid- 
erable body  of  French  troops  in  the  south  of  Calabria, 
saw  the  necessity  of  some  vigorous  movement  to  check 
the  further  progress  of  the  enemy.  He  determined  to 
concentrate  his  forces,  scattered  through  the  province, 
and  march  against  Ferdinand,  in  the  hope  of  bringing 
him  to  a  decisive  action.  For  this  purpose,  in  addition 
to  the  garrisons  dispersed  among  the  principal  towns, 
he  summoned  to  his  aid  the  forces,  consisting  prin- 
cipally of  Swiss  infantry,  stationed  in  the  Basilicate 
under  Pr^cy,  a  brave  young  cavalier,  esteemed  one  of 
the  best  officers  in  the  French  service.  After  the  ar- 
rival of  this  reinforcement,  aided  by  the  levies  of  the 


3o8 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


Angevin  barons,  D'Aubigny,  whose  effective  strength 
now  greatly  surpassed  that  of  his  adversary,  directed 
his  march  towards  Seminara.'* 

Ferdinand,  who  had  received  no  intimation  of  his 
adversary's  junction  with  Pr6cy,  and  who  considered 
him  much  inferior  to  himself  in  numbers,  no  sooner 
heard  of  his  approach  than  he  determined  to  march 
out  at  once,  before  he  could  reach  Seminara,  and  give 
him  battle.  Gonsalvo  was  of  a  different  opinion.  His 
own  troops  had  too  little  experience  in  war  with  the 
French  and  Swiss  veterans  to  make  him  willing  to  risk 
all  on  the  chances  of  a  single  battle.  The  Spanish 
heavy-armed  cavalry,  indeed,  were  a  match  for  any  in 
Europe,  and  were  even  said  to  surpass  every  other  in 
the  beauty  and  excellence  of  their  appointments,  at  a 
period  when  arms  were  finished  to  luxury. 's  He  had 
but  a  handful  of  these,  however ;  by  far  the  greatest 
part  of  his  cavalry  consisting  oi gtnetes,  or  light-armed 
troops,  of  inestimable  service  in  the  wild  guerilla  war- 
fare to  which  they  had  been  accustomed  in  Granada,  but 
obviously  incapable  of  coping  with  the  iron  gendarmerie 
of  France.  He  felt  some  distrust,  too,  in  bringing  his 
little  corps  of  infantry  without  further  preparation, 
armed,  as  they  were,  only  with  short  swords  and  buck- 
lers, and  much  reduced,  as  has  been  already  stated,  in 
number,  to  encounter  the  formidable  phalanx  of  Swiss 
pikes.     As  for  the  Calabrian  levies,  he  did  not  place 

M  Giovio,  Vita  Magni  Gonsalvi,  pp.  215-217. — Idem,  Hist,  sui  Tem- 
poris,  pp.  83-85. — Bembo,  Istoria  Viniziana,  lib.  3,  pp.  160,  185. — 
Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  lib.  2,  cap.  8. — Guicciardini,  Istoria, 
lib.  2,  pp.  88,  92. — Chronica  del  Gran  Capitan,  cap.  25. 

»s  Giovio,  Vita  Magni  Gonsalvi,  lib.  i. — Du  Bos,  Ligue  de  Cambray; 
introd.,  p.  58. 


CAMPAIGNS  OF  GONSALVO. 


309 


the  least  reliance  on  them.  At  all  events,  he  thought 
it  prudent,  before  coming  to  action,  to  obtain  more 
accurate  information  than  they  now  possessed  of  the 
actual  strength  of  the  enemy.** 

In  all  this,  however,  he  was  overruled  by  the  impa- 
tience of  Ferdinand  and  his  followers.  The  principal 
Spanish  cavaliers,  indeed,  as  well  as  the  Italian,  among 
whom  may  be  found  names  which  afterwards  rose  to 
high  distinction  in  these  wars,  urged  Gonsalvo  to  lay 
aside  his  scruples ;  representing  the  impolicy  of  show- 
ing any  distrust  of  their  own  strength  at  this  crisis, 
and  of  balking  the  ardor  of  their  soldiers,  now  hot 
for  action.  The  Spanish  chief,  though  far  from  being 
convinced,  yielded  to  these  earnest  remonstrances, 
and  King  Ferdinand  led  out  his  little  army  without 
further  delay  against  the  enemy. 

After  traversing  a  chain  of  hills  stretching  in  an 
easterly  direction  from  Seminara,  at  the  distance  of 
about  three  miles  he  arrived  before  a  small  stream,  on 
the  plains  beyond  which  he  discerned  the  French  army 
in  rapid  advance  against  him.  He  resolved  to  await 
its  approach  ;  and,  taking  position  on  the  slope  of  the 
hills  towards  the  river,  he  drew  up  his  horse  on  the 
right  wing,  and  his  infantry  on  the  left.'' 

The  French  generals,  D'Aubigny  and  Pr6cy,  putting 
themselves  at  the  head  of  their  cavalry  on  the  left, 
consisting  of  about  four  hundred   heavy-armed   and 


^  Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  lib.  2,  cap.  7. — Giovio,  Vita 
Magni  Gonsalvi,  ubi  supra. 

'7  Giovio,  Vita  Magni  Gonsalvi,  lib.  i,  pp.  216,  217. — ChnSnica  del 
Gran  Capitan,  cap.  24. — Quintana,  Espaiioles  c^lebres,  torn.  i.  pp.  223- 
827. 


310 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


I  i 


twice  as  many  light  horse,  dashed  into  the  water 
without  hesitation.  Their  right  was  occupied  by  the 
bristling  phalanx  of  Swiss  spearmen  in  close  array , 
behind  these  were  the  militia  of  the  country.  The 
Spanish  ginetes  succeeded  in  throwing  the  French  gen- 
darmerie into  some  disorder  before  it  could  form  after 
crossing  the  stream;  but  no  sooner  was  this  accom- 
plished than  the  Spaniards,  incapable  of  withstanding 
the  charge  of  their  enemy,  suddenly  wheeled  about 
and  precipitately  retreated,  with  the  intention  of  again 
returning  on  their  assailants,  after  the  fashion  of  the 
Moorish  tactics.  The  Calabrian  militia,  not  compre- 
hending this  manoeuvre,  interpreted  it  into  a  defeat. 
They  thought  the  battle  lost,  and,  seized  with  a  panic, 
broke  their  ranks,  and  fled  to  a  man,  before  the  Swiss 
infantry  had  time  so  much  as  to  lower  its  lances  against 
them. 

King  Ferdinand  in  vain  attempted  to  rally  the  das- 
tardly fugitives.  The  French  cavalry  was  soon  upon 
them,  making  frightful  slaughter  in  their  ranks.  The 
young  monarch,  whose  splendid  arms  and  towering 
plumes  made  him  a  conspicuous  mark  in  the  field,  was 
exposed  to  imminent  peril.  He  had  broken  his  lance 
in  the  body  of  one  of  the  foremost  of  the  French  cava- 
liers, when  his  horse  fell  under  him,  and,  as  his  feet 
were  entangled  in  the  stirrups,  he  would  inevitably 
have  perished  in  the  mel^e,  but  for  the  prompt  assist- 
ance of  a  young  nobleman  named  Juan  de  Altavilla, 
who  mounted  his  master  on  his  own  horse  and  calmly 
awaited  the  approach  of  the  enemy,  by  whom  he  was 
immediately  slain.  Instances  of  this  affecting  loyalty 
iind  self-devotion  not  unfrequently  occur  in  these  wars, 


CAMPAIGNS  OF  GONSALVO. 


3" 


throwing  a  melancholy  grace  over  the  darker  and  more 
ferocious  features  of  the  time.*' 

Gonsalvo  was  seen  in  the  thickest  of  the  fight,  long 
after  the  king's  escape,  charging  the  enemy  briskly  at 
the  head  of  his  handful  of  Spaniards,  not  in  the  hope 
of  retrieving  the  day,  but  of  covering  the  flight  of  the 
panic-struck  Neapolitan^.  At  length  he  was  borne 
along  by  the  rushing  tide,  and  succeeded  in  bringing 
off  the  greater  part  of  his  cavalry  safe  to  Seminara. 
Had  the  French  followed  up  the  blow,  the  greater  part 
of  the  royal  army,  with  probably  King  Ferdinand  and 
Gonsalvo  at  its  head,  would  have  fallen  into  their 
hands  \  and  thus  not  only  the  fate  of  the  campaign, 
but  of  Naples  itself,  would  have  been  permanently 
decided  by  this  battle.  Fortunately,  the  French  did 
not  understand  so  well  how  to  use  a  victory  as  how  to 
gain  it.  They  made  no  attempt  to  pursue.  This  is 
imputed  to  the  illness  of  their  general,  D'Aubigny, 
occasioned  by  the  extreme  unhealthiness  of  the  climate. 
He  was  too  feeble  to  sit  long  on  his  horse,  and  was 
removed  into  a  litter  as  soon  as  the  action  was  decided. 
Whatever  was  the  cause,  the  victors  by  this  inaction 
suffered  the  golden  fruits  of  victory  to  escape  them. 
Ferdinand  made  his  escape  on  the  same  day  on  board 
a  vessel  which  conveyed  him  back  to  Sicily ;  and  Gon- 
salvo, on  the  following  morning  before  break  of  day, 
effected  his  retreat  across  the  mountains  to  Rcggio,  at 
the  head  of  four  hundred  Spanish  lances.     Thus  termi- 


»*  Giovio,  Hist,  sui  Temporis,  lib.  3,  pp.  83-85. — Chr6nica  del 
Gran  Capitan,  cap.  24. — Summonte,  Hist,  di  Napoli,  torn.  iii.  lib.  6, 
cap.  2. — Guicciardini,  Istoria,  lib.  2,  p.  112. — Garibay,  Compendio 
torn.  ii.  lib.  19,  p.  690. 


312 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


nated  the  first  battle  of  importance  in  which  Gonsalvo 
of  Cordova  held  a  distinguished  command ;  the  only 
one  which  he  lost  during  his  long  and  fortunate  career. 
Its  loss,  however,  attached  no  discredit  to  him,  since 
it  was  entered  into  in  manifest  opposition  to  his  judg- 
ment. On  the  contrary,  his  conduct  throughout  this 
affair  tended  greatly  to  establish  his  reputation,  by 
showing  him  to  be  no  less  prudent  in  council  than 
bold  in  act  ion. '» 

King  Ferdinand,  far  from  being  disheartened  by  this 
defeat,  gained  new  confidence  from  his  experience  of 
the  favorable  dispositions  existing  towards  him  in  Cala- 
bria. Relying  on  a  similar  feeling  of  loyalty  in  his 
capital,  he  determined  to  hazard  a  bold  stroke  for  its 
recovery,  and  that,  too,  instantly,  before  his  late  dis- 
comfiture should  have  time  to  operate  on  the  spirits  of 
his  partisans.  He  accordingly  embarked  at  Messina, 
with  a  handful  of  troops  only,  on  board  the  fleet  of 
the  Spanish  admiral,  Requesens.  It  amounted  in  all 
to  eighty  vessels,  most  of  them  of  inconsiderable  size. 
With  this  armament,  which,  notwithstanding  its  for- 
midable show,  carried  little  effective  force  for  land- 
operations,  the  adventurous  young  monarch  appeared 
off  the  harbor  of  Naples  before  the  end  of  June. 

Charles's  viceroy,  the  duke  of  Montpensier,  at  that 
time  garrisoned  Naples  with  six  thousand  French  troops. 
On  the  appearance  of  the  Spanish  navy,  he  marched 
out  to  prevent  Ferdinand's  landing,  leaving  a  few  only 
of  his  soldiers  to  keep  the  city  in  awe.  But  he  had 
scarcely  quitted  it  before   the   inhabitants,  who  had 

*9  Guicciardini,  Istoria,  lib.  i,  p.  112. — Giovio,  Hist,  sui  Temporis, 
lib.  3,  p.  85. — Lanuza,  Historias,  torn.  i.  lib.  i,  cap,  7. 


CAMPAIGNS  OF  GONSALVO. 


313 


waited  with  impatience  an  opportunity  for  throwing 
off  the  yoke,  sounded  the  tocsin,  and,  rising  to  arms 
through  every  part  of  the  city  and  massacring  the 
feeble  remains  of  the  garrison,  shut  the  gates  against 
him ;  while  Ferdinand,  who  had  succeeded  in  drawing 
off  the  French  commander  in  another  direction,  no 
sooner  presented  himself  before  the  walls  than  he  was 
received  with  transports  of  joy  by  the  enthusiastic 
people." 

The  French,  however,  though  excluded  from  the 
city,  by  making  a  circuit  effected  an  entrance  into  the 
fortresses  which  commanded  it.  From  these  posts, 
Montpensier  sorely  annoyed  the  town,  making  frequent 
attacks  on  it,  day  and  night,  at  the  head  of  his  gen- 
darmerie, until  they  were  at  length  checked  in  every 
direction  by  barricades  which  the  citizens  hastily  con- 
structed with  wagons,  casks  of  stones,  bags  of  sand, 
and  whatever  came  most  readily  to  hand.  At  the  same 
time,  the  windows,  balconies,  and  house-tops  were 
crowded  with  combatants,  who  poured  down  such  a 
deadly  shower  of  missiles  on  the  heads  of  the  French 
as  finally  compelled  them  to  take  shelter  in  •  their 
defences.  Montpensier  was  now  closely  besieged,  till  at 
length,  reduced  by  famine,  he  was  compelled  to  capit- 
ulate. Before  the  term  prescribed  for  his  surrender 
had  arrived,  however,  he  effected  his  escape  at  night,  by 
water,  to  Salerno,  at  the  head  of  twenty-five  hundred 
men.    The  remaining  garrison,  with  the  fortresses,  sub- 


so  Summonte,  Hist,  di  Napoli,  torn.  vi.  p.  519. — Guicciardini,  Istoria, 
lib.  2,  pp.  113,  114. — Giovio,  Hist,  sui  Temporis,  lib.  3,  pp.  87,  88. — 
Villeneuve,  M^moires,  apud  Petitot,  Collection  des  Mdmoires,  torn.  xiv. 
pp.  264,  265. 

O 


3M 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


mitted  to  the  victorious  Ferdinand  in  the  beginning  of 
the  following  year.  And  thus,  by  one  of  those  sudden 
turns  which  belong  to  the  game  of  war,  the  exiled 
prince,  whose  fortunes  a  few  weeks  before  had  appeared 
perfectly  desperate,  was  again  established  in  the  palace 
of  his  ancestors." 

Montpensier  did  not  long  remain  in  his  new  quar- 
ters. He  saw  the  necessity  of  immediate  action,  to 
counteract  the  alarming  progress  of  the  enemy.  He 
quitted  Salerno  before  the  end  of  winter,  strengthening 
his  army  by  such  reinforcements  as  he  could  collect 
from  every  quarter  of  the  country.  With  this  body  he 
directed  his  course  towards  Apulia,  with  the  intention 
of  bringing  Ferdinand,  who  had  already  established  his 
headquarters  there,  to  a  decisive  engagement.  Ferdi- 
nand's force,  however,  was  so  far  inferior  to  that  of 
his  antagonist  as  to  compel  him  to  act  on  the  defensive 
until  he  had  been  reinforced  by  a  considerable  body  of 
troops  from  Venice.  The  two  armies  were  then  so 
equally  matched  that  neither  cared  to  hazard  all  on  the 
chances  of  a  battle  \  and  the  campaign  wasted  away  in 
languid  operations,  which  led  to  no  important  result. 

In  the  mean  time,  Gonsalvo  de  Cordova  was  slowly 
fighting  his  way  up  through  southern  C"'  '  .  The 
character  of  the  country,  rough  and  mouatan,  us,  like 
the  Alpujarras,  and  thickly  sprinkled  with  tv^.Hfied 
places,  enabled  him  to  bring  into  play  the  tactics  which 
he  had  learned  in  the  war  of  Granada.  He  made  little 
use  of  heavy-armed  troops,  relying  on  his  ginetes,  and 

"  Giovio,  Hist,  sui  Temporis,  lib.  3,  pp.  88-90,  114-119. — Guic- 
ciardini,  Istoria,  lib.  2,  pp.  114-117. — Summonte,  Hist,  di  Napoli,  torn, 
vi.  pp.  520.  521. 


CAMPAIGNS  OF  GONSALVO. 


31S 


Still  more  on  his  foot ;  taking  care,  however,  to  avoid 
any  direct  encounter  with  the  dreaded  Swiss  battalions. 
He  made  amends  for  paucity  of  numbers  and  want  of 
real  strength  by  rapidity  of  movement  and  the  wily 
tactics  of  Moorish  warfare;  <;  ..ing  on  the  enemy 
where  least  expected,  surprising  his  strongholds  at 
dead  of  night,  entangling  him  in  ambuscades,  and 
desolating  the  country  with  those  terrible  forays  whose 
effects  he  had  so  often  witnessed  on  the  fair  vegas  of 
Granada.  He  adopted  the  policy  practised  by  his 
master,  Ferdinand  the  Catholic,  in  the  Moorish  war, 
lenient  to  the  submissive  foe,  but  wreaking  terrible 
vengeance  on  such  as  resisted." 

The  French  were  sorely  disconcerted  by  these  irreg- 
ular operations,  so  unlike  anything  to  which  they  were 
accustomed  in  European  warfare.  They  were  further 
disheartened  by  the  continued  illness  of  D'Aubigny, 
and  by  the  growing  disaffection  of  the  Calabrians, 
who  in  the  southern  provinces  contiguous  to  Sicily 
were  particularly  well  inclined  to  Spain. 

Gonsalvo,  availing  himself  of  these  friendly  dispo- 
sitions, pushed  forward  his  successes,  carrying  one 
stronghold  after  another,  until  by  the  end  of  the  year 
he  had  overrun  the  whole  of  Lower  Calabria.  His 
progress  would  have  been  hcill  more  rapid  but  for  the 
serious  embarrassments  which  he  experienced  from 
want  of  supplies.  He  had  received  some  reinforce- 
ments from  Sicily,  but  very  few  from  Spain ;  while  the 


"  Bembo,  Istoria  Viniziana.lib.  3,  pp.  173, 174. — Chronica  del  Gran 
Capitan,  cap.  26. — Giovio,  Vita  Magni  Gonsalvi,  lib.  i,  p.  218. — Ville- 
neuve,  Memoires,  p.  313. — Sismondi,  Republiques  Italiennes,  torn.  xii. 
p.  386. 


3i6 


ITALIAN^  WARS. 


boasted  Galician  levies,  instead  of  afteen  hundred, 
had  dwindled  to  scarcely  chree  hundred  men  ;  who 
arrived  in  the  most  miserable  plight,  destitute  of 
clothing  and  munitions  of  every  kind.  He  was  com- 
pelled to  weaken  still  further  his  inadequate  force  by 
garrisoning  the  conquered  places,  most  of  which,  how- 
ever, he  was  obliged  to  leave  without  any  defence  at 
all.  In  addition  to  this,  he  was  so  destitute  of  the 
necessary  funds  for  the  payment  of  his  troops  that  he 
was  detained  nearly  two  months  at  Nicastro,  until  Feb- 
ruary, 1496,  when  he  received  a  remittance  from  Spain. 
After  this,  he  resumed  operations  with  such  vigor  that 
by  the  end  of  the  following  spring  he  had  reduced  all 
Upper  Calabria,  with  the  exception  of  a  small  corner 
of  the  province,  in  which  D'Aubigny  still  maintained 
himself.  At  this  crisis  he  was  summoned  from  the  scene 
of  his  conquests  to  the  support  of  the  king  of  Naples, 
who  lay  encamped  before  Atelia,  a  town  intrenched 
among  the  Apennines,  on  the  western  borders  of  the 
Basilicate.'3 

The  campaign  of  the  preceding  winter  had  termi- 
nated without  any  decisive  results,  the  two  armies  of 
Montpensier  and  King  Ferdinand  having  continued 
in  sight  of  each  other  without  ever  coming  to  action. 
These  protracted  operations  were  fatal  to  the  French. 
Their  few  supplies  were  intercepted  by  the  peasantry 
of  the  country;  their  Swiss  and  German  mercenaries 
mutinied  and  deserted  for  want  of  pay;  and  the  Nea 
politans  in  their  service  went  off  in  great  numbers, 

»3  Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  lib.  2,  cap.  11,  20. — Guicciardini, 
Istoria,  lib.  2,  p.  140. — Giovio,  Vita  Magni  Gonsalvi,  lib.  i,  pp.  219, 
220. — Chronica  del  Gran  Capitan,  cap.  25,  26. 


CAMPAIGNS  OF  GONSALVO. 


317 


disgusted  with  the  insolent  and  overbearing  manners 
of  th  new  allies.  Charles  the  Eighth,  in  the  mean 
while,  was  wasting  liis  hours  and  health  in  the  usual 
round  of  profligate  pleasures.  From  the  moment  of 
recrossing  the  Alps  he  seemed  to  have  shut  out  Italy 
from  his  thoughts.  He  was  equally  insensible  to  the 
supplications  of  the  few  Italians  at  his  court,  and  the 
remonstrances  of  his  French  nobles,  many  of  whom, 
although  opposed  to  the  first  expedition,  would  will- 
ingly have  undertaken  a  second  to  support  their  brave 
comrades,  whom  the  heedless  young  monarch  now 
abandoned  to  their  fate."* 

At  length  Montpensier,  finding  no  prospect  of  relief 
from  home,  and  straitened  by  the  want  of  provisions, 
determined  to  draw  off  from  the  neighborhood  of 
Benevento,  where  the  two  armies  lay  encamped,  and 
retreat  to  the  fruitful  province  of  Apulia,  whose  prin- 
cipal places  were  still  garrisoned  by  the  French.  He 
broke  up  his  camp  secretly  at  dead  of  night,  and 
gained  a  day's  march  on  his  enemy  before  the  latter 
began  his  pursuit.  This  Ferdinand  pushed  with  such 
vigor,  however,  that  he  overtook  the  retreating  army 

»4  Guicciardini,  Istoria,  lib.  3,  pp.  140,  157,  158.— Comines,  M^- 
moires,  liv.  8,  chap.  23,  24. — Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  epist.  183.— 
Du  Bos  discriminates  between  the  character  of  the  German  levies  or 
landsknechts  and  the  Swiss,  in  the  following  terms;  "  Les  lansquenets 
dtoient  meme  de  beaucoup  mieu.v  faits,  „eneralement  parlant,  et  de 
bien  meillcure  mine  sous  les  armes,  que  les  fantassins  Suisses ;  mais  ils 
6toient  incapables  de  discipline.  Au  contraire  des  Suisses,  ils  ^toient 
sans  obdissance  pour  leurs  chefs,  et  sans  amitie  pour  leurs  camarades." 
(Ligue  de  Cambray,  torn,  i.,  dissert,  prelim.,  p.  66.)  Comines  confirms 
the  distinction,  with  a  high  tribute  to  the  loyalty  of  the  Swiss,  which 
has  continued  their  honorable  characteristic  to  the  present  day. 
Memoires,  liv.  8,  chap.  21. 


3i8 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


\ 


at  the  town  of  Atella,  and  completely  intercepted  its 
further  progress.  This  town,  which,  as  already  noticed, 
is  situated  on  the  western  skirts  of  the  Basilicate,  lies 
in  a  broad  valley  encompassed  by  a  lofty  amphitheatre 
of  hills,  through  which  flows  a  little  river,  tributary  to 
the  Ofanto,  watering  the  town,  and  turning  several 
mills  which  supplied  it  with  flour.  At  a  few  miles' 
distance  was  the  strong  place  of  Ripa  Candida,  gar- 
risoned by  the  French,  through  which  Montpensier 
hoped  to  maintain  his  communications  with  the  fertile 
regions  of  the  interior. 

Ferdinand,  desirous  if  possible  to  bring  the  war  to 
a  close  by  the  capture  of  the  whole  French  army,  pre- 
pared for  a  vigorous  blockade.  He  disposed  his  forces 
so  as  to  intercept  supplies  by  commanding  the  avenues 
to  the  town  in  every  direction.  He  soon  found,  how- 
ever, that  his  army,  though  considerably  stronger  than 
his  rival's,  was  incompetent  to  this  without  further  aid. 
He  accordingly  resolved  to  summon  to  his  support 
Gonsalvo  de  Cordova,  the  fame  of  whose  exploits  now 
resounded  through  every  part  of  the  kingdom.'* 

The  Spanish  general  received  Ferdinand's  summons 
while  encamped  with  his  army  at  Castrovillari,  in  the 
north  of  Upper  Calabria.  If  he  complied  with  it,  he 
saw  himself  in  danger  of  losing  all  the  fruits  of  his 
long  campaign  of  victories;  for  his  active  enemy  would 
not  fail  to  profit  by  his  absence  to  repair  his  losses.  If 
he  refused  obedience,  however,  it  might  defeat  the  most 

as  Giovio,  Vita  Magni  Gonsalvi,  lib.  i,  pp.  218,  219. — Chronica  del 
Gran  Capitan,  cap.  28. — Quintana,  Espafioles  c^lebres,  torn.  i.  p,  226.— 
Bembo,  Istoria  Viniziana,  lib.  3,  p.  184. — Guiociardini,  Istoria,  lib,  3, 
p.  158. 


CAMPAIGNS  OF  GONSALVO. 


3»9 


favorable  opportunity  which  had  yet  presented  itself 
for  bringing  the  war  to  a  close.  He  resolved,  there- 
fore, at  once  to  quit  the  field  of  his  triumphs  and  march 
to  King  Ferdinand's  relief.  But,  before  his  departure, 
he  prepared  to  strike  such  a  blow  as  should,  if  possible, 
incapacitate  his  enemy  for  any  effectual  movement 
during  his  absence. 

He  received  intelligence  that  a  considerable  number 
of  Angevin  lords,  mostly  of  the  powerful  house  of  San 
Severino,  with  their  vassals  and  a  reinforcement  of 
French  troops,  were  assembled  at  the  little  town  of 
Laino,  on  the  northwestern  borders  of  Upi)er  Calabria, 
where  they  lay  awaiting  a  junction  with  D'Aubigny. 
Gonsalvo  determined  to  surprise  this  place,  and  cap- 
ture the  rich  spoils  which  it  contained,  before  his 
departure.  His  road  lay  through  a  wild  and  moun- 
tainous country.  The  passes  were  occupied  by  the 
Calabrian  peasantry  in  the  interest  of  the  Angevin 
party.  The  Spanish  general,  however,  found  no  diffi- 
culty in  forcing  a  way  through  this  undisciplined  rab- 
ble, a  large  body  of  whom  he  surrounded  and  cut  to 
pieces  as  they  lay  in  ambush  for  him  in  the  valley  of 
Murano.  Laino,  whose  base  is  washed  by  the  waters 
of  the  Lao,  was  defended  by  a  strong  castle  built  on 
the  opposite  side  of  the  river,  and  connected  by  a 
bridge  with  the  town.  All  approach  to  the  place  by 
the  high  road  was  commanded  by  this  fortress.  Gon- 
salvo obviated  this  difficulty,  however,  by  a  circuitous 
route  'across  the  mountains.  He  marched  all  night, 
and,  fording  the  waters  of  the  Lao  about  two  miles 
above  the  town,  entered  it  with  his  little  army  before 
break  of  day,  having  previously  detached  a  small  corps 


320 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


to  take  possession  of  the  bridge.  The  inhabitants, 
startled  from  their  slumbers  by  the  unexpected  appear- 
ance of  the  enemy  in  their  streets,  hastily  seized  their 
arms  and  made  for  the  castle  on  the  other  side  of  the 
river.  The  pass,  however,  was  occupied  by  the  Span- 
iards ;  and  the  Neapolitans  and  French,  hemmed  in 
on  every  side,  began  a  desperate  resistance,  which 
terminated  with  the  death  of  their  chief,  Americo  San 
Severino  and  the  capture  of  such  of  his  followers  as 
did  not  fall  in  the  m&lee.  A  rich  booty  fell  into  the 
hands  of  the  victors.  The  most  glorious  prize,  how- 
ever, was  the  Angevin  barons,  twenty  in  number, 
whom  Gonsalvo,  after  the  action,  sent  prisoners  to 
Naples.  This  decisive  blow,  of  which  the  tidings 
spread  like  wild-fire  throughout  the  country,  settled 
the  fate  of  Calabria.  It  struck  terror  into  the  hearts 
of  the  French,  and  crippled  them  so  far  as  to  leave 
Gonsalvo  little  cause  for  anxiety  during  his  proposed 
absence."* 

The  Spanish  general  lost  no  time  in  pressing  forward 
on  his  march  towards  Atella.  Before  quitting  Calabria 
he  had  received  a  reinforcement  of  five  hundred  soldiers 
from  Spain;  and  his  whole  Spanish  forces,  according 
to  Giovio,  amounted  to  one  hundred  men-at-arms,  five 
hundred  light  cavalry,  and  two  thousand  foot,  picked 
men,  and  well  schooled  in  the  hardy  service  of  the  late 
campaign.''     Although  a  great  part  of  his  march  lay 

*  Giovio,  Vita  Magni  Gonsalvi,  pp.  219,  220.  —  Chr6nica  del  Gran 
Capitan,  cap,  27. — Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  torn.  i.  lib*.  2,  cap. 
26.  —  Quintana,  Espaiioles  celebres,  torn.  i.  pp.  227,  228.  —  Guicciar- 
dini,  Istoria,  lib.  3,  pp.  158,  159. — Mariana,  Hist,  de  Espafia,  torn.  ii. 
lib.  26,  cap.  12. 

»7  Giovio,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  lib.  4,  p.  132. 


CAMPAIGNS  Of  GONSALVO. 


391 


through  a  hostile  country,  he  encountered  little  oppo- 
sition ;  for  the  terror  of  his  name,  says  the  writer  htst 
quoted,  had  everywhere  gone  before  him.  He  arrived 
before  Atella  at  the  beginning  of  July.  The  king  of 
Naples  was  no  sooner  advised  of  his  approach  than  he 
marched  out  of  the  camp,  attended  by  the  Venetian 
general,  the  marquis  of  Mantun,  and  the  papal  legate, 
Coesar  Borgia,  to  receive  him.  All  were  eager  to  do 
honor  to  the  man  who  had  achieved  such  brilliant 
exploits;  who,  in  less  than  a  year,  had  .ade  hi'  self 
master  of  the  larger  part  of  the  kingdom  of  N  i^  les, 
and  that  with  the  most  limited  resources,  in  eUance 
of  the  bravest  and  best-disciplined  sold*,  > .  in  Europe. 
It  was  then,  according  to  the  Spanish  .vritcis,  that  he 
was  by  general  consent  greeted  with  the  title  of  the 
Great  Captain ;  by  which  he  is  much  more  familiarly 
known  in  Spanish,  and,  it  may  be  added,  in  most 
histories  of  the  period,  than  by  his  own  name.** 

*  Quintana,  Espafioles  c^lebres,  torn,  i.  p.  228. — Giovio,  Vita  Magni 
Gonsalvi,  lib.  i,  p.  220. — The  Aragonese  historians  are  much  ruffled 
by  the  irreverent  manner  in  which  Guicciardini  notices  the  origin  of 
the  cognomen  of  the  Great  Captain  ;  which  even  his  subsequent  pane- 
gyric cannot  atone  for:  "Era  capitano  Consalvo  Ernandes,  di  casa 
d'  Aghilar,  di  patria  Cordovese,  uoi,  d  "i  molto  valorc,  ed  esercitato 
lungamente  nelle  guerre  di  Granata,  i.  juale  nel  principio  della  venuta 
sua  in  Italia,  cognoniinato  dalla  jattanza  Spagnuola  il  Gran  Capitano, 
per  significare  con  questo  titolo  'a  suprema  podest^  sopra  loro,  merit6 
per  le  preclare  vittorie  che  ebb^  dipoi,  che  per  consentimento  univer- 
sale gli  fosse  confermai'j  \:  perpetuato  questo  sopranome,  per  signifi- 
cazione  di  virtu  grande,  e  di  grande  eccellenza  nella  disciplina  militare." 
(Istoria,  torn.  i.  p.  112.)  According  to  Zurita,  the  title  was  not  con- 
ferred till  the  Spanish  general's  appearance  before  Atella,  and  the  first 
example  of  its  formal  recognition  was  in  the  instrument  of  capitulation 
at  that  place.  (Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  lib.  2,  cap.  27.)  This  seems 
to  derive  support  from  the  fact  that  Gonsalvo's  biographer  and  contem- 
VOL.  II. — 21  O* 


322 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


Gonsalvo  found  the  French  sorely  distressed  by  the 
blockade,  which  was  so  strictly  maintained  as  to  allow 
few  supplies  from  abroad  to  pass  into  the  town.  His 
quick  eye  discovered  at  once,  however,  that  in  order 
to  render  it  perfectly  effectual  it  would  be  necessary  to 
destroy  the  mills  in  the  vicinity,  which  supplied  Atella 
with  flour.  He  undertook  this,  on  the  day  of  his 
arrival,  at  the  head  of  his  own  corps.  Montpensier, 
aware  of  the  importance  of  these  mills,  had  stationed 
a  strong  guard  for  their  defence,  consisting  of  a  body 
of  Gascon  archers  and  the  Swiss  pikemen.  Although 
the  Spaniards  had  never  been  brought  into  direct  col- 
lision with  any  large  masses  of  this  formidable  infantry, 
yet  occasional  rencontres  with  small  detachments,  and 
increased  familiarity  with  its  tactics,  had  stripped  it  of 
much  of  its  terrors.  Gonsalvo  had  even  so  far  profited 
by  the  example  of  the  Swiss  as  to  strengthen  his  infantry 
by  mingling  the  long  pikes  with  the  short  swords  and 
bucklers  of  the  Spaniards.'^ 

He  formed  his  cavalry  into  two  divisions,  posting  his 
handful  of  heavy-armed  with  some  of  the  light  horse, 
so  as  to  check  any  sally  from  the  town,  while  he  des- 

porary,  Giovio,  begins  to  distinguish  him  by  that  epithet  from  this  period. 
Abarca  assigns  a  higher  antiquity  to  it,  quoting  the  words  of  the  royal 
grant  of  the  duchy  of  Sessa,  made  to  Gonsalvo,  as  authority.  (Reyes 
de  Aragon,  rey  39,  cap.  9.)  In  a  former  edition  I  intimated  my  doubt 
of  the  historian's  accuracy.  A  subsequent  inspection  of  the  instru- 
ment itself,  in  a  work  since  come  into  my  possession,  shows  this  dis- 
trust to  have  been  well  founded;  for  it  is  there  simply  said  that  the 
title  was  conferred  in  Italy.     Pulgar,  Sumario,  p.  138. 

39  This  was  improving  on  the  somewhat  similar  expedient  ascribed 
by  Polybius  to  King  Pyrrhus,  who  mingled  alternate  cohorts,  armed 
with  short  weapons  after  the  Roman  fashion,  with  those  of  his  Mace* 
donian  spearmen.     Lib.  17,  sec.  24. 


CAMPAIGNS  OF  GONSALVO. 


3*3 


tined  the  remainder  to  support  the  infantry  in  the 
attack  upon  the  enemy.  Having  made  these  arrange- 
ments, the  Spanish  chieftain  led  on  his  men  confidently 
to  the  charge.  The  Gascon  archery,  however,  seized 
with  a  panic,  scarcely  awaited  his  approach,  but  fled 
shamefully,  before  they  had  time  to  discharge  a  second 
volley  of  arrows,  leaving  the  battle  to  the  Swiss.  These 
latter,  exhausted  by  the  sufferings  of  the  siege,  and 
dispirited  by  long  reverses  and  by  the  presence  of 
a  new  and  victorious  foe,  did  not  behave  with  their 
wonted  intrepidity,  but,  after  a  feeble  resistance,  aban- 
doned their  position  and  retreated  towards  the  city. 
Gonsalvo,  having  gained  his  object,  did  not  care  to 
pursue  the  fugitives,  but  instantly  set  about  demolishing 
the  mills,  every  vestige  of  which,  in  a  few  hours,  was 
swept  from  the  ground.  Three  days  after,  he  sup- 
ported the  Neapolitan  troops  in  an  assault  on  Ripa 
Candida,  and  carried  that  important  post,  by  means 
of  which  Atella  maintained  a  communication  with  the 
interior.** 

Thus  cut  off  from  all  their  resources,  and  no  longer 
cheered  by  hopes  of  succor  from  their  own  country, 
the  French,  after  suffering  the  severest  privations  and 
being  reduced  to  the  most  loathsome  aliment  for  sub- 
sistence, made  overtures  for  a  capitulation.  The  terms 
were  soon  arranged  with  the  king  of  Naples,  who  had 
no  desire  but  to  rid  his  country  of  the  invaders.  It 
was  agreed  that  if  the  French  commander  did   not 


30  Giovio,  Hist,  sui  Temporis,  lib.  4,  p.  133. —  Idem,  Vita  Magni 
Gonsalvi,  pp.  220,  221.  —  Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  lib.  2,  cap. 
37.  —  Chronica  del  Grr.n  Capitan,  cap.  28.  —  Quintana,  Espanoles 
c<Slebres,  torn.  i.  p.  229. — Abarca,  Reyes  de  Aragon,  rey  30,  cap.  9. 


324 


ITALIAN  WARS, 


receive  assistance  in  thirty  clays,  he  should  evacuate 
Atella,  and  cause  every  place  holding  under  him  in  the 
kingdom  of  Naples,  with  all  its  artillery,  to  be  sur- 
rendered to  King  Ferdinand,  and  that,  on  these  con- 
ditions, his  soldiers  should  be  furnished  with  vessels  to 
transport  them  back  to  France ;  that  the  foreign  mer- 
cenaries should  be  permitted  to  return  to  their  own 
homes ;  and  that  a  general  amnesty  should  be  extended 
to  such  Neapolitans  as  returned  to  their  allegiance  in 
fifteen  days. 3' 

Such  were  the  articles  of  capitulation,  signed  on  the 
2ist  of  July,  1496,  which  Comines,  who  received  the 
tidings  at  the  court  of  France,  does  not  hesitate  to 
denounce  as  **a  most  disgraceful  treaty,  without  paral- 
lel, save  in  that  made  by  the  Roman  consuls  at  the 
Caudine  Forks,  which  was  too  dishonorable  to  be 
sanctioned  by  their  countrymen."  The  reproach  is 
certainly  unmerited,  and  comes  with  ill  grace  from  a 
court  which  was  wasting  in  riotous  indulgence  the  very 
resources  indispensable  to  the  brave  and  loyal  subjects 
who  were  endeavoring  to  maintain  its  honor  in  a  foreign 
land.  3" 

Unfortunately,  Montpensier  was  unable  to  enforce 
the  full  performance  of  his  own  treaty ;  as  many  of  the 
French  refused  to  deliver  up  the  places  intiusted  to 
them,  inder  the  pretence  that  their  authority  was  de- 
rived, not  from  the  viceroy,  but  from  the  king  himself. 
During  the  discussion  of  this  point  the  French  troops 
were  removed  to  Baia  and  Pozzuolo  and  the  adjacent 


3«  Villeneirve,  M^moires,  p.  318. — Comines,  Memoires,  liv.  8,  chap, 
ai. — Giovio,  Hist,  sui  Temporis,  lib.  4,  p.  136. 
3»  Comines,  Memoires,  liv.  8,  chap.  21. 


CAMPAIGNS  OF  GONSALVO. 


325 


places  on  the  coast.  The  unhealthin  2ss  of  the  situation, 
together  with  that  of  the  autumnal  season,  and  an  in- 
temperate indulgence  in  fruits  and  wine,  soon  brought 
on  an  epidemic  among  the  soldiers,  which  swept  them 
off  in  great  numbers.  The  gallant  Montpensier  was 
one  of  the  first  victims.  He  refused  the  earnest  solicita- 
tions of  his  brother-in-law,  the  marquis  of  Mantua,  to 
quit  his  unfortunate  companions  and  retire  to  a  place 
of  safety  in  the  interior.  The  shore  was  literally 
strewed  with  the  bodies  of  the  dying  and  the  dead. 
Of  the  whole  numler  of  Frenchmen,  amounting  to  not 
less  than  five  thousand,  who  marched  out  of  Atella, 
not  more  than  five  hundred  ever  reached  their  native 
country.  The  Swiss  nnd  other  mercenaries  were  scarcely 
more  fortunate.  **  They  made  their  way  back  as  they 
could  through  Italy,"  says  a  writer  of  the  period,  **  in 
the  most  deplorable  state  of  destitution  and  suffering, 
the  gaze  of  all,  and  a  sad  example  of  the  caprice  of 
fortune."^  Such  was  the  miserable  fate  of  that  bril- 
liant and  formidable  array  which  scarcely  two  years 
before  had  poured  down  on  the  fair  fields  of  Italy  in 
all  the  insolence  of  expected  conquest.  Well  would  it 
be  if  the  name  of  every  conqueror,  whose  successes, 
though  built  on  human  misery,  are  so  dazzling  to  the 
imagination,  could  be  made  to  point  a  moral  for  the 
instruction  of  his  species,  as  effectually  as  that  of  Charles 
the  Eighth. 

The  young  king  of  Naples  did  not  live  long  to  enjoy 


33  Giovio,  Hist,  sui  Temporis,  p.  137. — Comines,  Memoires,  liv.  8, 
chap.  21. — Giovio,  Vita  Magni  Gonsalvi,  lib.  i,  p.  221. — Guicciardini, 
Istoria,  lib.  3,  p.  160. — Villeneuve,  Memoires,  apud  Petitot,  torn.  xiv. 
p.  318. 


326 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


his  triumphs.  On  his  return  from  Atella  he  contracted 
an  inauspicious  marriage  with  his  aunt,  a  lady  of  nearly 
his  own  age,  to  whom  he  had  been  long  attached.  A 
careless  and  somewhat  intemperate  indulgence  in  pleas- 
ure, succeeding  the  hardy  life  which  he  had  been  lately 
leading,  brought  on  a  flux  which  carried  him  off  in  the 
twenty-eighth  year  of  his  age  and  second  of  his  reign. 
(Sept.  7th,  1496.)  He  was  the  fifth  monarch  who, 
in  the  brief  compass  of  three  years,  had  sat  on  the 
disastrous  throne  of  Naples. 

Ferdinand  possessed  many  qualities  suited  to  the 
turbulent  times  in  which  he  lived.  He  was  vigorous 
and  prompt  in  action,  and  naturally  of  a  high  and 
generous  spirit.  Still,  however,  he  exhibited  glimpses, 
even  in  his  last  hours,  of  an  obliquity,  not  to  say 
ferocity,  of  temper,  which  characterized  many  of  his 
line,  and  which  led  to  ominous  conjectures  as  to  what 
would  have  been  his  future  policy.^  He  was  succeeded 
on  the  throne  by  his  uncle  Frederick,  a  prince  of  a 
gentle  disposition,  endeared  to  the  Neapolitans  by 
repeated  acts  of  benevolence,  and  by  a  magnanimous 
regard  for  justice,  of  which  the  remarkable  fluctuations 
of  his  fortune  had  elicited  more  than  one  example. 
His  amiable  virtues,  however,  required  a  kindlier  soil 
and  season  for  their  expansion,  and,  as  the  event  proved, 
made  him  no  match  for  the  subtile  and  unscrupulous 
politicians  of  the  age. 

34  Giannone,  Istoria  di  Napoli,  lib.  29,  cap.  2. — Sumnionte,  Hist,  di 
Napoli,  lib.  6,  cap.  2.— Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist,,  epist.  188. — While 
stretched  on  his  death-bed,  Ferdinand,  according  to  Bembo,  caused 
the  head  of  his  prisoner,  the  Bishop  of  Teano,  to  be  brought  to  him 
and  laid  at  the  foot  of  his  couch,  that  he  might  be  assured  with  his  own 
eyes  of  the  execution  of  the  sentence.     Istoria  Viniziana,  lib.  3,  p.  189. 


CAMPAIGNS  OF  GONSALVO. 


327 


His  first  act  was  a  general  amnesty  to  the  disaffected 
Neapolitans,  who  felt  such  confidence  in  his  good  faith 
that  they  returned,  with  scarcely  an  exception,  to  their 
allegiance.  His  next  measure  was  to  request  the  aid  of 
Gonsalvo  ae  Cordova  in  suppressing  the  hostile  move- 
ments made  by  the  French  during  his  absence  from 
Calabria.  At  the  name  of  the  Great  Captain,  the 
Italians  flocked  from  all  quarters,  to  serve  without  pay 
under  a  banner  which  was  sure  to  lead  them  to  victory. 
Tower  and  town,  as  he  advanced,  went  down  before 
him  ;  and  the  French  general,  D'Aubigny,  sjon  saw 
himself  reduced  to  the  necessity  of  making  the  best 
terms  he  could  with  his  conqueror,  and  evacuating  the 
province  altogether.  The  submission  of  Calabria  was 
speedily  followed  by  that  of  the  few  remaining  cities 
in  other  quarters,  still  garrisoned  by  the  French ; 
comprehending  the  last  rood  of  territory  possessed  by 
Charles  the  Eighth  in  the  kingdom  of  Naples.^ 

35  Giovio,  Hist,  sui  Temporis,  lib.  4,  p.  139. — Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey 
Hernando,  lib.  2,  cap.  30,  33. — Guicciardini,  Istoria,  lib.  3,  p.  160. — 
Giannone,  Istoria  di  Napoli,  torn.  iii.  lib.  29,  cap.  3. 


Our  narrative  now  leads  us  on  the  beaten  track  of  Italian  history. 
I  have  endeavored  to  make  the  reader  acquainted  vvitii  the  peculiar 
character  and  pretensions  of  the  principal  Sjxinish  authorities  on  whom 
I  have  relied  in  the  progress  of  the  work.  This  would  be  superfluous 
in  regard  to  the  Italians,  who  enjoy  the  rank  of  classics,  not  only  in 
their  own  country,  but  throughout  Euroije,  and  have  furnished  the 
earliest  models  among  the  moderns  of  historic  composition.  Fortu- 
n  itely,  two  of  the  most  eminent  of  them,  Guicciardini  and  Paolo 
Giovio,  lived  at  the  period  of  our  narrative,  and  have  embraced  the 
whole  extent  of  it  in  their  histories.  These  two  writers,  besides  the 
attractions  of  elegant  scholarship,  and  talent,  occupied  a  position 


328 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


which  enabled  them  to  take  a  clear  view  of  all  the  principal  political 
movements  of  their  age ;  circumstances  which  have  made  their  accounts 
of  infinite  value  m  respect  to  foreign  transactions,  as  well  as  domestic. 
Guicciardini  was  a  conspicuous  actor  in  the  scenes  he  describes ;  and 
a  long  residence  at  the  court  of  Ferdinand  the  Catholic  opened  to  him 
the  most  authentic  sources  of  information  in  regard  to  Spain.  Oiovio, 
from  his  intimate  relations  with  the  principal  persons  of  his  time,  had 
also  access  to  the  best  sources  of  knowledge ;  while  in  the  notice  of 
foreign  transactions  he  was  but  little  exposed  to  those  venal  influences 
which  led  him  too  often  to  employ  the  golden  or  iron  pen  of  history  as 
interest  dictated.  Unfortunately,  a  lamentable  hiatus  occurs  in  his 
greatest  work,  "  Historioe  sui  Temporis,"  embracing  the  whole  period 
intervening  between  the  end  of  Charles  VIII. 's  expedition  and  the 
accession  of  Leo  X.,  in  1513.  At  the  time  of  the  memorable  sack  of 
Rome  by  the  Duke  of  Bourbon,  in  1527,  Giovio  deposited  his  manu- 
script, with  a  quantity  of  plate,  in  an  iron  chest,  which  he  hid  in  an 
obscure  corner  of  the  nhurch  of  Santa  Maria  sopra  Minerva,  The 
treasure,  however,  did  not  escape  the  sei  ching  eyes  of  two  Spanish 
soldiers,  who  broke  open  i..^  chest,  and  one  of  them  seized  on  the 
plate,  regarding  the  papers  as  oi  no  value.  The  other,  not  being  quite 
such  a  fool,  says  Giovio,  preserved  such  of  the  manuscripts  as  were 
on  vellum  and  ornamented  with  rich  bindings,  but  threw  away  what 
was  written  on  paper. 

The  part  thus  thrown  away  contained  six  books,  relating  to  the  period 
above  mentioned,  which  were  never  afterwards  recovered.  The  soldier 
brought  the  remainder  to  their  author,  who  bought  them  at  the  price 
of  a  vacant  benefice,  which  he  persuaded  the  pope  to  confer  on  the 
freebooter,  in  his  native  land  of  Cordova.  It  is  not  often  that  simony 
has  found  so  good  an  apology.  The  deficiency,  although  never  re- 
paired by  Giovio,  was  in  some  degree  supplied  by  his  biographies  of 
eminent  men,  and,  amor^  others,  by  that  of  Gonsalvo  de  Cordova,  in 
which  he  has  collected  with  great  industry  all  the  events  of  any  interest 
in  the  life  of  this  great  commander.  The  narrative  is  in  general  cor- 
roborated by  the  Spanish  authorities,  and  contains  some  additional 
particulars,  especially  respecting  his  early  life,  which  Giovio's  personal 
intimacy  with  the  principal  characters  of  the  period  might  easily  have 
furnished. 

This  portion  of  our  story  is,  moreover,  illustrated  by  the  labors  of 
M.  Sismondi,  in  his  "  Republiques  Italiennes,"  which  may  undoubt- 
edly claim  to  be  ranked  among  the  most  remarkable  historical  achieve- 


CAMPAIGNS  OF  GONSALVO. 


329 


ments  of  our  time ;  whether  we  consider  the  dexterous  management 
of  the  narrative,  or  the  admirable  spirit  of  philosophy  by  which  it  is 
illumined.  It  must  be  admitted  that  he  has  perfectly  succeeded  in 
unravelling  the  intricate  web  of  Italian  politics ;  and,  notwithstanding 
the  complicated  and,  indeed,  motley  character  of  his  subject,  the  his- 
torian has  left  a  uniform  and  harmonious  impression  on  the  mind  of 
the  reader.  This  he  has  accomplished  by  keeping  constantly  in  view 
the  principle  which  regulated  all  the  various  movements  of  the  com- 
plex machinery;  so  that  his  narrative  becomes,  what  he  terms  it  in 
his  English  abridgment,  a  history  of  Italian  liberty.  By  keeping  this 
principle  steadily  before  him,  he  has  been  able  to  solve  much  that 
hitherto  was  dark  and  problematical  in  his  subject;  and,  if  he  has 
occasionally  sacrificed  something  to  theory,  he  has,  on  the  whole,  pur- 
sued the  investigation  in  a  truly  philosophical  manner,  and  arrived  ai 
results  the  most  honorable  and  cheering  to  humanity. 

Fortunately,  his  own  mind  was  deeply  ])en(>trated  with  reverence  for 
the  free  institutions  which  he  has  analyzed.  If  it  is  too  much  to  say 
that  the  historian  of  repubUcs  should  be  himself  a  republican,  it  is  at 
least  true  that  his  soul  should  be  penetrated  to  its  very  depths  with  the 
spirit  which  animates  them.  No  one  who  is  not  smitten  with  the  love 
of  freedom  can  furnish  the  key  to  much  that  is  enigmatical  in  her  char- 
acter, and  reconcile  his  readers  to  the  harsh  and  repulsive  features  that 
she  sometimes  wears,  by  revealing  the  beauty  and  grandeur  of  the  soul 
within. 

That  portion  of  our  narrative  which  is  incorporated  with  Italian 
story  is  too  small  to  occupy  much  space  on  Sisniondi's  plan.  He  has 
discussed  it,  moreover,  in  a  manner  not  very  favorable  to  the  Span- 
iards, whom  he  seems  to  have  regarded  with  somewhat  of  the  aversion 
with  which  an  Italian  of  the  sixteenth  century  viewed  the  ultramontane 
barbarians  of  Europe.  Perhaps  the  reader  may  find  some  advantage 
in  contemplating  another  side  of  the  picture,  and  studying  the  less 
familiar  details  presented  by  the  Spanish  authorities. 


CHAPTER    III. 


ITALIAN     WARS.  —  GONSALVO     SUCCORS      THE      POPE.  — 

TREATY     WITH      FRANCE. ORGANIZATION      OF     THE 

SPANISH    MILITIA. 

1496-1498. 

Gonsalvo  succors  the  Pope.— Storms  Ostia.— Reception  in  Rome. — 
Peace  with  France. —  Ferdinand's  Reputation  advanced  by  his 
Conduct  in  the  War.— Organization  of  the  Militia. 

It  had  been  arranged  by  the  treaty  of  Venice,  that, 
while  the  allies  were  carrying  on  the  war  in  Naples, 
the  emperor  elect  and  the  king  of  Spain  should  make 
a  diversion  in  their  favor,  by  invading  the  French 
frontiers.  Ferdinand  had  performed  his  part  of  the 
engagement.  Ever  since  the  beginning  of  the  war,  he 
had  maintained  a  large  force  along  the  borders  from 
Fontarabia  to  Perpignan.  In  1496^  the  regular  army 
kept  in  pay  amounted  to  ten  thousand  horse  and  fifteen 
thousand  foot ;  which,  together  with  the  Sicilian  arma- 
ment, necessarily  involved  an  expenditure  exceedingly 
heavy  under  the  financial  pressure  occasioned  by  the 
Moorish  war.  The  command  of  the  levies  in  Rous- 
sillon  was  given  to  Don  Enrique  Enriquez  de  Guzman, 
who,  far  from  acting  on  the  defensive,  carried  his  men 
repeatedly  over  the  border,  sweeping  off  fifteen  or 
twenty  thousand  head  of  cattle  in  a  single  foray, 
and  ravaging   the  country  as  far   as  Carcassona  and 

(330) 


CONSALVO  SUCCOJiS   THE   POPE. 


33 « 


Narbonne.'  The  French,  who  had  concentrated  a 
considerable  force  in  the  south,  retaliated  by  similar 
inroads,  in  one  of  which  they  succeeded  in  surprising 
the  fortified  town  of  Salsas.  The  works,  however,  were 
in  so  dilapidated  a  state  that  the  place  was  scarcely 
tenable,  and  it  was  abandoned  on  the  approach  of  the 
Spanish  army.  A  truce  soon  followed,  which  put  an 
end  to  further  operations  in  that  quarter.' 

The  submission  of  Calabria  seemed  to  leave  no  fur- 
ther occupation  for  the  arms  of  the  Great  Captain 
in  Italy.  Before  quitting  that  country,  however,  he 
engaged  in  an  adventure  which,  as  narrated  by  his 
biographers,  forms  a  brilliant  episode  to  his  regular 
campaigns.  Ostia,  the  seaport  of  Rome,  was  among 
the  places  in  the  papal  territory  forcibly  occupied  by 
Charles  the  Eighth,  and  on  his  retreat  had  been  left  to 
a  French  garrison  under  the  command  of  a  Biscayan 
adventurer  named  Menaldo  Guerri.  The  place  was 
so  situated  as  entirely  to  command  the  mouth  of  the 
Tiber,  enabling  the  piratical  horde  who  garrisoned  it 
almost  wholly  to  destroy  the  commerce  of  Rome,  and 
even  to  reduce  the  city  to  great  distress  for  want  of 
provisions.  The  imbecile  government,  incapable  of 
defending  itself,  implored  Gonsalvo's  aid  in  dislodging 

»  Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  lib.  2,  cap.  12,  14,  16,  24. — 
Giovio  says,  in  allusion  to  King  Ferdinand's  show  of  preparation  on 
the  frontier,  "  Ferdinandus,  maxim^  cautus  et  pecunioe  tenax,  specieni 
ingentis  coacti  exercitus  ad  deterrendos  hostes  prsebere,  quam  bellura 
gerere  mallet,  quum  id  sine  ingenti  pecunia  admiuistrari  non  posse 
intelligeret."  Hist,  sui  Temporis,  p.  140. 

»  Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Htrnando,  lib.  2,  cap.  35, 36. — Abarca,  Reyes 
de  Aragon,  rey  30,  cap.  9. — Garibay,  Conipendio,  torn.  ii.  lib.  19,  cap. 
5. — Comines,  Memoires,  liv.  8,  chap.  23. — Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist., 
epist.  169. 


33» 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


Ii«,i 


this  nest  of  formidable  freebooters.  The  Spanish 
general,  who  was  now  at  leisure,  complied  with  the 
pontiff's  solicitations,  and  soon  after  presented  himself 
before  Ostia  with  his  little  corps  of  troops,  amounting 
in  all  to  three  hundred  horse  and  fifteen  hundred  foot.^ 

Guerri,  trusting  to  the  strength  of  his  defences, 
refused  to  surrender.  Gonsalvo,  after  coolly  preparing 
his  batteries,  opened  a  heavy  cannonade  on  the  place, 
which  at  the  end  of  five  days  effected  a  practicable 
breach  in  the  walls.  In  the  mean  time,  Garcilasso  de 
la  Vega,  the  Castilian  ambassador  at  the  papal  court, 
who  could  not  bear  to  remain  inactive  so  near  the  field 
where  laurels  were  to  be  won,  arrived  to  Gonsalvo's 
support,  with  a  handful  of  his  own  countrymen  resident 
in  Rome.  This  gallant  little  band  scaling  the  walls 
on  the  opposite  side  to  that  assailed  by  Gonsalvo, 
effected  an  entrance  into  the  town,  while  the  garrison 
was  occupied  with  maintaining  the  breach  against  the 
main  body  of  the  Spaniards.  Thus  surprised,  and 
hemmed  in  on  both  sides,  Guerri  and  his  associates 
made  no  further  resistance,  but  surrendered  themselves 
prisoners  of  war ;  and  Gonsalvo,  with  more  clemency 
than  was  usually  shown  on  such  occasions,  stopped  the 
carnage,  and  reserved  his  captives  to  grace  his  entry 
into  the  capital.* 

This  was  made  a  few  days  after,  with  all  the  pomp 
of  a  Roman  triumph.  The  Spanish  general  entered 
by  the  gate  of  Ostia,  at  the  head  of  his  martial  squad- 

3  Giovio,  Vita  Magni  Gonsalvi,  lib.  i,  p.  221. — Chr6nica  del  Gran 
Capitan,  cap.  30. — Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  lib.  3,  cap.  i. — 
Villeneuve,  Memoires,  p.  317. 

4  Giovio,  Vita  Magni  Gonsalvi,  p.  222, — Quintana,  Espafioles  c^le- 
bres,  torn.  i.  p.  234, 


GONSALVO  SUCCORS   THE  POPE. 


333 


rons  in  battle-array,  with  colors  flying  and  music  play- 
ing, while  the  rear  was  brought  up  by  the  captive  chief 
and  his  confederates,  so  long  the  terror,  now  the  de- 
rision of  the  populace.  The  balconies  and  windows 
were  crowded  with  spectators,  and  the  streets  lined 
with  multitudes,  who  shouted  forth  the  name  of  Gon- 
salvo  de  Cordova,  the  "deliverer  of  Rome!"  The 
procession  took  its  way  through  the  principal  streets 
of  the  city  towards  the  Vatican,  where  Alexander  the 
Sixth  awaited  its  approach,  seated  under  a  canopy  of 
state  in  the  chief  saloon  of  the  palace,  surrounded  by 
his  great  ecclesiastics  and  nobility.  On  Gonsalvo's 
entrance,  the  cardinals  rose  to  receive  him.  The 
Spanish  general  knelt  down  to  receive  the  benediction 
of  the  pope ;  but  the  latter,  raising  him  up,  kissed 
him  on  the  forehead,  and  complimented  him  with  the 
golden  rose,  which  the  Holy  See  was  accustomed  to 
dispense  as  the  reward  of  its  most  devoted  champions. 
In  the  conversation  which  ensued,  Gonsalvo  obtained 
the  pardon  of  Guerri  and  his  associates,  and  an  exemp- 
tion from  taxes  for  the  oppressed  inhabitants  of  Ostia. 
In  a  subsequent  part  of  the  discourse,  the  poi:)e  taking 
occasion  most  inopportunely  to  accuse  the  Spanish 
sovereigns  of  unfavorable  dispositions  towards  himself, 
Gonsalvo  replied  with  much  warmth,  enumerating  the 
various  good  offices  rendered  by  them  to  the  church, 
and,  roundly  taxing  the  pojie  with  ingratitude,  some- 
what bluntly  advised  him  to  reform  his  life  and  con- 
versation, which  brought  scandal  on  all  Christendom. 
His  Holiness  testified  no  indignation  at  this  unsavory 
rebuke  of  the  Great  Captain,  though,  as  the  historians 
with  some  ndiveti  inform  us,  he  was  greatly  surprised 


334 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


to  find  the  latter  so  fluent  in  discourse,  and  so  well 
instructed  in  matters  foreign  to  his  profession.* 

Gonsalvo  experienced  the  most  honorable  reception 
from  King  Frederick  on  his  return  to  Naples.  During 
his  continuance  there,  he  was  lodged  and  sumptuously 
entertained  in  one  of  the  royal  fortresses ;  and  the 
grateful  monarch  requited  his  services  with  the  title  of 
Duke  of  St.  Angelo,  and  an  estate  in  Abruzzo  contain- 
ing three  thousand  vassals.  He  had  before  pressed 
these  honors  on  the  victor,  who  declined  accepting 
them  till  he  had  obtained  the  consent  of  his  own  sov- 
ereigns. Soon  after,  Gonsalvo,  quitting  Naples,  revis- 
ited Sicily,  where  he  adjusted  certain  differences  which 
had  arisen  betwixt  the  viceroy  and  the  inhabitants  re- 
specting the  revenues  of  the  island.  Then  embarking 
with  his  whole  force,  he  reached  the  shores  of  Spain  in 
the  month  of  August,  1498.  His  return  to  his  native 
land  was  greeted  with  a  general  enthusiasm  far  more 
grateful  to  his  patriotic  heart  than  any  homage  or  honors 
conferred  by  foreign  princes.  Isabella  welcomed  him 
with  pride  and  satisfaction,  as  having  fully  vindicated 
her  preference  of  him  to  his  more  experienced  rivals 
for  the  difficult  post  of  Italy;  and  Ferdinand  did  not 
hesitate  to  declare  that  the  Calabrian  campaigns  re- 
flected more  lustre  on  his  crown  than  the  conquest  of 
Granada.* 

The   total   expulsion   of  the    French   from   Naples 


S  Giovio,  Vita  Magni  Gonsalvi,  p.  222. — Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Her- 
nando, lib.  3,  cap.  I. — Guicciardini,  Istoria,  lib.  3,  p.  175. — Chronica 
del  Gran  Capitan,  cap.  30. 

*  Giovio,  Vita  Magni  Gonsalvi,  p.  223. — Ciir6nica  del  Gran  Capitan, 
cap.  31,  32. — Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  lib,  3,  cap.  38. 


GONSALVO  SUCCORS   THE  POPE, 


335 


brought  hostilities  between  that  nation  and  Spain  to 
a  close.  The  latter  had  gained  her  point,  and  the 
former  had  little  heart  to  resume  so  disastrous  an  en- 
terprise. Before  this  event,  indeed,  overtures  had  been 
made  by  the  French  court  for  a  separate  treaty  with 
Spain.  The  latter,  however,  was  unwilling  to  enter 
into  any  compact  without  the  participation  of  her 
allies.  After  the  total  abandonment  of  the  French 
enterprise,  there  seemed  to  exist  no  further  pretext 
for  prolonging  the  war.  The  Spanish  government, 
moreover,  had  little  cause  for  satisfaction  with  its 
confederates.  The  emperor  had  not  co-operated  in  the 
descent  on  the  enemy's  frontier,  according  to  agree- 
ment ;  nor  had  the  allies  ever  reimbursed  Spain  for 
the  heavy  charges  incurred  in  fulfilling  her  part  of 
the  engagements.  The  Venetians  were  taken  up  with 
securing  to  themselves  as  much  of  the  Neapolitan  ter- 
ritory as  they  could,  by  way  of  indemnification  for 
their  own  expenses.'  The  duke  of  Milan  had  already 
made  a  separate  treaty  with  King  Charles.  In  short, 
every  member  of  the  league,  after  the  first  alarm  sub- 
sided, had  shown  itself  ready  to  sacrifice  the  common 
weal  to  its  own  private  ends.  With  these  causes  of 
disgust,  the  Spanish  government  consented  to  a  truce 
with  France,  to  begin  for  itself  on  the  5th  of  March, 
and  for  the  allies,  if  they  chose  to  be  included  in 
it,  seven  weeks  later,  and  to  continue  till  the  end  of 


7  Comines  says,  with  some  naivete,  in  reference  to  the  places  in  Na- 
jjles  which  the  Venetians  had  got  into  their  possession,  "  Je  croy  que 
leur  intention  n'est  point  de  les  rcndre ;  car  ils  ne  I'ont  point  de  cous- 
tume  quand  ellcs  leur  sont  biens^antes  conime  sont  cellescy,  qui  sont 
du  cost6  de  leur  goufre  de  Venise."    Menioires,  p.  194. 


336 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


October,  1497.  This  truce  was  subsequently  prolonged, 
and,  after  the  death  of  Charles  the  Eighth,  terminated 
in  a  definitive  treaty  of  peace,  signed  at  Marcoussi, 
August  5th,  1498.^ 

In  the  discussions  to  which  these  arrangements  gave 
rise,  the  project  is  said  to  have  been  broached  for  the 
conquest  and  division  of  the  kingdom  of  Naples  by 
the  combined  powers  of  France  and  Spain,  which  was 
carried  into  effect  some  years  later.  According  to 
Comines,  the  proposition  originated  with  the  Spanish 
court,  although  it  saw  fit,  in  a  subsequent  period  of 
the  negotiations,  to  disavow  the  fact.'  The  Spanish 
writers,  on  the  other  hand,  impute  the  first  suggestion 
of  it  to  the  French,  who,  tliey  say,  went  so  far  as  to 
specify  the  details  of  the  partition  subsequently  adopted ; 
according  to  which  the  two  Calabrias  were  assigned  to 
Spain.  However  this  may  be,  there  is  little  doubt  that 
Ferdinand  had  long  since  entertained  the  ide^  of  assert- 
ing his  claim,  at  some  time  or  other,  to  the  crown  of 
Naples.  He,  as  well  as  his  father,  and  indeed  the  whole 
nation,  had  beheld  with  dissatisfaction  the  transfer  of 
what  they  deemed  their  rightful  inheritance,  purchased 
by  the  blood  and  treasure  of  Aragon,  to  an  illegitimate 
branch  of  the  family.     The  accession  of  Frederick,  in 

8  Guicciardini,  Istoria,  lib.  3,  p.  178. — Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Her- 
nando, lib.  2,  cap.  44;  lib.  3,  cap.  13, 19,  21,26. — Comines,  Memoires, 
liv.  8,  chap.  23. 

9  Comines  gives  some  curious  details  respecting  the  French  embassy, 
which  he  considers  to  have  been  completely  outwitted  by  the  superior 
management  of  the  Spanish  government;  who  intended  nothing  fur- 
ther at  this  time  by  the  proposal  of  a  division  than  to  amuse  the  French 
court  until  the  fate  of  Naples  should  be  decided.  M6moires,  liv.  8, 
cuap.  33. 


GONSALVO  SUCCORS   THE  POPE. 


337 


particular,  who  came  to  the  throne  with  the  support  of 
the  Angevin  party,  the  old  enemies  of  Aragon,  had 
given  great  umbrage  to  the  Spanish  monarch. 

The  Castilian  envoy,  Garcilasso  de  la  Vega,  agree- 
ably to  the  instructions  of  his  court,  urged  Alexander 
the  Sixth  to  withhold  the  investiture  of  the  kingdom 
from  Frederick,  but  unavailingly,  as  the  pope's  inter- 
ests were  too  closely  connected  by  marriage  with  those 
of  the  royal  family  of  Naples.  Under  these  circum- 
stances, it  was  somewhat  doubtful  what  course  Gon- 
salvo  should  be  directed  to  pursue  in  the  present 
exigency.  That  prudent  commander,  however,  found 
the  new  monarch  too  strong  in  the  affections  of  his 
people  to  be  disturbed  at  present.  All  that  now  re- 
mained for  Ferdinand,  therefore,  was  to  rest  contented 
with  the  possession  of  the  strong  posts  pledged  for  the 
reimbursement  of  his  expenses  in  the  war,  and  to 
make  such  use  of  the  correspondence  which  the  late 
campaigns  had  opened  to  him  in  Calabria,  that,  when 
the  ^ime  arrived  for  action,  he  might  act  with  effect." 

Ferdinand's  conduct  through  the  whole  of  the  Italian 
war  had  greatly  enhanced  his  reputation  throughout 
Europe  for  sagacity  and  prudence.  It  afforded  a  most 
advantageous  comparison  with  that  of  his  rival,  Charies 
the  Eighth,  whose  very  first  act  had  been  the  surrender 
of  so  important  a  territory  as  Roussillon.  The  con- 
struction of  the  treaty  relating  to  this,  indeed,  laid  the 
Spanish  monarch  open  to  the  imputation  of  artifice. 
But   this,  at   least,  did   no  violence   to   the   political 


«» Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  lib.  2,  cap.  26,  33. — Mariana, 
Hist,  de  Espana,  lib.  26,  cap.  16. — Salazar  de  Meudoza.  Monarquia. 
torn.  i.  lib.  3,  cap.  10. 

Vol.  II. — 22  r 


r 


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I  I 


: ! 


!     I:  :i 

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i 


III      :' 


'i 


I 


338 


ITALIAN  WARS, 


maxims  of  the  age,  and  only  made  him  regarded  as  the 
more  shrewd  and  subtile  diplomatist;  while,  on  the 
other  hand,  he  appeared  before  the  world  in  the  im- 
posing attitude  of  the  defender  of  the  church,  and  of 
the  rights  of  his  injured  kinsman.  His  influence  had 
been  clearly  discernible  in  every  operation  of  moment, 
whether  civil  or  military.  He  had  been  most  active, 
through  his  ambassadors  at  Genoa,  Venice,  and  Rome, 
in  stirring  up  the  great  Italian  confederacy,  which 
eventually  broke  the  power  of  King  Charles ;  and  his 
representations  had  tended,  as  much  as  any  other  cause, 
to  alarm  the  jealousy  of  Sforza,  to  fix  the  vacillating 
politics  of  Alexander,  and  to  quicken  the  cautious  and 
dilatory  movements  of  Venice.  He  had  shown  equal 
vigor  in  action,  and  contributed  mainly  to  the  success 
of  the  war  by  his  operations  on  the  side  of  Roussillon, 
and  still  more  in  Calabria.  On  the  latter,  indeed,  he 
had  not  lavished  any  extraordinary  expenditure  ;  a  cir- 
cumstance partly  attributable  to  the  state  of  his  finances, 
severely  taxed,  as  already  noticed,  by  the  Granadine 
war,  as  well  as  by  the  operations  in  Roussillon,  but  in 
part,  also,  to  his  habitual  frugality,  which,  with  a  very 
different  spirit  from  that  of  his  illustrious  consort, 
always  stinted  the  measure  of  his  suj)plies  to  the  bare 
exigency  of  the  occasion.  Fortunately,  the  genius  of 
the  Great  Captain  was  so  fruitful  in  resources  as  to  sup- 
ply every  deficiency,  enabling  him  to  accomplish  such 
brilliant  results  as  effectually  concealed  any  poverty  of 
preparation  on  the  part  of  his  master. 

The  Italian  wars  were  of  signal  importance  to  the 
Spaniards.  Until  that  time,  they  had  been  cooped  up 
within  the  narrow  limits  of  the  Peninsula,  uninstructed 


GONSALVO  SUCCORS   THE  POPE. 


339 


and  taking  little  interest  in  the  concerns  of  the  rest 
of  Europe.  A  new  world  was  now  opened  to  them. 
They  were  taught  to  measure  their  own  strength  by 
collision  with  other  powers  on  a  common  scene  of 
action ;  and  success,  inspiring  them  with  greater  con- 
fidence, seemed  to  beckon  them  on  towards  the  field 
where  they  were  destined  to  achieve  still  more  splendid 
triumphs. 

This  war  afforded  them  also  a  most  useful  lesson  of 
tactics.  The  war  of  Granada  had  insensibly  trained  up 
a  hardy  militia,  patient  and  capable  of  every  privation 
and  fatigue,  and  brought  under  strict  subordination. 
This  was  a  great  advance  beyond  the  independent 
and  disorderly  habits  of  the  feudal  service.  A  most 
valuable  corps  df  light  troops  had  been  formed, 
schooled  in  all  the  wild,  irregular  movements  of 
guerilla  warfare.  But  the  nation  was  sfill  defective 
in  that  steady,  well -disciplined  infantry,  which,  in 
the  improved  condition  of  military  science,  seemed 
destined  to  decide  the  f?*-e  of  Ijattk  j  m  Europe  thence- 
forward. 

The  Calabrian  campa^^ns,  which  vcr^  suited  in  some 
degree  to  the  display  of  their  own  :yi  tics,  fortunately 
gave  the  Spaniards  opportjnily  foi  studying  at  leisure 
those  of  their  adversaries.  The  lesson  aiuS  not  lost. 
Before  the  end  of  the  war;  importi'nt  innovations  were 
made  in  the  discipline  iind  arms  of  the  Spanish  soldier. 
I'he  Swiss  pike,  or  lance,  which,  as  has  been  already 
noticed,  Gonsalvo  de  Cordova  ha.'  ainglcd  with  the 
short  sword  of  his  own  legions,  no^^  became  the  regular 
weapon  of  one-third  of  the  infantry.  The  division  of 
the  various  corps  in   the  cavalry  and  infantry  services 


I 


I 


£ 


. 


340 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


was  arranged  on  more  scientific  principles,  and  the 
whole,  in  short,  completely  reorganized." 

Before  the  end  of.  the  war,  preparations  were  made 
for  embodying  a  national  militia,  which  should  take 
the  place  of  the  ancient  hermandad.  Laws  were  passed 
regulating  the  equipment  of  every  individual  according 
to  his  property.  A  man's  arms  were  declared  not  liable 
for  debt,  even  to  the  crown  ;  and  smiths  and  other 
artificers  "'ere  restricted,  under  severe  penalties,  from 
working  tnem  up  into  other  articles."   In  1496,  a  census 

»i  Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de  Hist.,  torn.  vi.  Ilust.  6. — Zurita,  Hist,  del 
Rey  Hernando,  lib.  3,  cap.  6. — The  ancient  Spaniards,  who  were  as 
noted  as  the  modern  for  the  temper  and  finish  of  their  blades,  used 
short  swords,  in  the  management  of  which  they  were  very  adroit. 
"  Hispano,"  says  Livy,  "  punctim  magis,  quam  caesim,  adsueto  petere 
hostem,  brevitate  habiles  [gladii]  et  cum  mucronibus."  (Hist.,  lib.  22, 
cap.  47.)  Sandoval  notices  the  short  sword,  "  cortas  espadas,"  as  the 
peculiar  weapon  of  the  Spanish  soldier  in  the  twelfth  century.  Historia 
de  los  Reyes  de  Castilla  y  de  Leon  (Madrid,  1792),  torn.  ii.  p.  240. 

'*  PragniAticas  del  Reyno,  fol.  83,  127,  129. — The  former  of  these 
ordinances,  dated  Tara9ona,  Sept.  i8th,  1495,  is  extremely  precise  in 
specifying  the  appointments  required  for  each  individual.  Among 
other  improvements,  introduced  somewhat  earlier,  may  be  mentioned 
that  of  organizing  and  thoroughly  training  a  small  corps  of  heavy- 
armed  cavalry,  amounting  to  twenty-five  hundred.  The  number  of 
men-at-arms  had  been  greatly  reduced  in  the  kingdom  of  late  years,  in 
consequence  of  the  exclusive  demand  for  tlte^ine/es  in  the  Moorish  war. 
Oviedo,  Quincuagenas,  MS. — Ordinances  were  also  passed  for  encour- 
aging the  breed  of  horses,  which  had  suffered  greatly  from  the  prefer- 
ence very  generally  given  by  the  Spaniards  to  mules.  This  had  been 
carried  to  such  a  length  that,  while  it  was  nearly  impossible,  according 
to  Bernaldez,  to  mount  ten  or  twelve  thousand  cavalry  on  horses,  ten 
times  that  number  could  be  provided  with  mules.  (Reyes  Catolicos, 
MS.,  cap,  184.)  "  E  porquc  si  a  esto  se  diesse  lugar,"  says  one  of  the 
praginatkas,  adverting  to  this  evil,  "  muy  prestamente  se  perderia  en 
nuestros  reynos  la  nobleza  de  la  cauelleria  que  en  ellos  suele  auer,  e  se 
oluidaria  el  exercicio  militar  de  que  en  los  tiempos  passados  nuestra 


GOA SALVO  SUCCORS   THE  POPE. 


341 


was  taken  of  all  persons  capable  of  bearing  arms ;  and 
by  an  ordinance,  dated  at  Valladolid,  February  22d,  in 
the  same  year,  it  was  provided  that  one  out  of  every 
twelve  inhabitants  between  twenty  and  forty-five  years 
of  age  should  be  enlisted  in  the  service  of  the  state, 
whether  for  foreign  war  or  the  suppression  of  disorders 
at  home.  The  remaining  eleven  were  liable  to  be  called 
on  in  case  of  urgent  necessity.  These  recruits  were  to 
be  paid  during  actual  service,  and  excused  from  taxes; 
the  only  legal  exempts  were  the  clergy,  hidalgos,  and 
paupers.  A  general  review  and  insi)ection  of  arms 
were  to  take  place  every  year,  in  the  months  of  March 
and  September,  when  prizes  were  to  be  awarded  to 
those  best  accoutred  and  most  expert  in  the  use  of  their 
weapons.  Such  were  the  judicious  regulations  by  which 
every  citizen,  without  being  withdrawn  from  his  regular 
occupation,  was  gradually  trained  up  for  the  national 
defence,  and  which,  without  the  oppressive  incum- 
brance of  a  numerous  standing  army,  placed  the  whole 
effective  force  of  tiie  country,  prompt  and  fit  for  action, 

nacion  de  Espana  ha  alcanr-.do  gran  fama  e  loor,"  it  was  ordered 
that  no  person  in  the  kuigdom  should  be  allowed  to  keep  a  mule 
unless  he  owned  a  horse  also,  and  that  none  but  ecclesiastics  and 
women  should  be  allowed  the  use  of  mules  in  the  saddle.  These 
edicts  were  enforced  with  the  utmost  rigor,  the  king  himseU  setting  the 
example  of  conformity  to  them.  By  these  seasonable  precautions,  the 
breed  of  Spanish  horses,  so  long  noted  throughout  Europe,  was  restored 
to  its  an.ient  credit,  and  the  mule  consigned  to  the  humble  ard  ap- 
propriate offices  of  drudgery,  or  raised  only  for  exportation.  For  these 
and  similar  provisio'^s,  see  Pragmdticas  del  Reyno,  fol.  127-132. — 
Mateo  Aleman's  whimsical /iVar^j^o  novel,  Guzman  d'Alfarache,  con- 
tains a  comic  adventure  showing  the  excessive  rigor  with  which  the 
edict  against  mules  was  enforced,  as  late  as  the  close  of  Philip  II.'s 
reign.  The  passage  is  extracted  in  Roscoe's  elegant  version  of  the 
Spanish  Novclisi^,  vol.  i.  p.  132. 


hJ 


& 


342 


ITALIAN  WARS. 


If 


at  the  disposal  of  the  government,  whenever  the  public 
good  should  call  for  it.'' 

'3  See  a  copy  of  the  ordinance  taken  from  the  Archives  of  Siman- 
cas ;  apud  Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de  Hist.,  torn.  vi.  apend,  13. — When 
Francis  I.,  who  was  destined  to  feel  the  effects  of  this  careful  military 
discipline,  beheld,  during  his  detention  in  Spain  in  the  beginning  of 
the  following  century,  striplings  with  scanty  down  upon  the  chin,  all 
armed  with  swords  at  their  sides,  he  is  said  to  have  cried  out,  "O 
bienaventurada  Espafia,  que  pare  y  cria  Ids  hombres  annadosl"  (L. 
Marineo,  Cosas  memorables,  lib.  5.)  An  exclama'ion  not  unworthy 
of  a  Napoleon, — or  an  Attila. 


^'^M. 


CHAPTER    IV. 

ALLIANCES  OF  THE   ROYAL   FAMILY. — DEATH   OF   PRINCE 
JOHN  AND  PRINCESS  ISABELLA. 

Royal  Family  of  Castile.  —  Matrimonial  Alliances  with  Portugal.^ 
With  Austria. — Marriage  of  John  and  Margaret. — Death  of  Prince 
John. — The  Queen's  Resignation. — Independence  of  the  Cortes  of 
Aragon. — Death  of  the  Princess  Isabella. — Recognition  of  her  infant 
Son  Miguel. 

The  credit  and  authority  which  the  Spanish  sover- 
eigns established  by  the  success  of  their  arms  were 
greatly  raised  by  the  matrimonial  connections  which 
they  formed  for  their  children.  This  was  too  impor- 
tant a  spring  of  their  policy  to  be  passed  over  in  silence. 
Their  family  consisted  of  one  son  and  four  daughters, 
whom  they  carefully  educated  in  a  manner  befitting 
their  high  rank,  and  who  repaid  their  solicitude  by 
exemplary  filial  obedience,  and  the  early  manifestation 
of  virtues  rare  even  in  a  private  station.'     They  seem 

'  The  princess  Dona  Isabel,  the  eldest  daughter,  was  born  at  Due- 
fias,  October  ist,  1470.  Their  second  child  and  only  son,  Juan,  prince 
of  Asturias,  was  not  born  until  eight  years  later,  June  30th,  1478,  at 
Seville.  Dona  Juana,  whom  the  queen  used  playfully  to  call  her 
"mother-in-law,"  suegra,  from  her  resemblance  to  King  Ferdinand's 
mother,  was  born  at  Toledo,  November  6th,  1479.  Doiia  Maria  was 
born  at  Cordova,  in  1482,  and  Do.ia  Catalina,  the  fifth  and  last  child, 
at  Alcald  de  Henares,  December  5th,  1485.  The  daughters  all  lived 
to  reign ;  but  their  brilliant  destinies  were  clouded  with  domestic  affile- 

(343) 


344 


THE  ROYAL  FAMILY. 


to  have  inherited  many  of  the  qualities  which  distin- 
guished their  illustrious  mother ;  great  decorum  and 
dignity  of  manners,  combined  with  ardent  sensibilities, 
and  unaffected  piety,  which,  at  least  in  the  eldest  and 
favorite  daughter,  Isabella,  was,  unhappily,  strongly 
tinctured  with  bigotry.  They  could  not,  indeed,  pre- 
tend to  their  mother's  comprehensive  mind  and  talent 
for  business,  although  there  seems  to  have  been  no 
deficiency  in  these  respects,  or,  if  any,  it  was  most 
effectually  supplied  by  their  excellent  education." 

The  marriage  of  the  princess  Isabella  with  Alonso, 
the  heir  of  the  Portuguese  crown,  in  1490,  has  been 
already  noticed.  This  had  been  eagerly  desired  by 
her  parents,  not  only  for  the  possible  contingency 
which  it  afforded  of  bringing  the  various  monarchies 
of  the  Peninsula  under  one  head  (a  design  of  which 
they  never  wholly  lost  sight),  but  from  the  wish  to 
conciliate  a  formidable  neighbor,  who  possessed  various 
means  of  annoyance,  which  he  had  shown  no  reluc- 
tance to  exert.  The  reigning  monarch,  John  the 
Second,  a  bold  and  crafty  prince,  had  never  forgotten 
his  ancient  quarrel  with  the  Spanish  sovereigns  in 
support  of  their  rival,  Joanna  Beltraneja,  or  Joanna  the 
Nun,  as  she  was  generally  called  in  the  Castilian  court 
after  she  had  taken  the  veil.  John,  in  open  contempt 
of  the  treaty  of  Alcantara,  and  indeed  of  all  monastic 
rule,  had  not  only  removed  his  relative  from  the  con- 

tions,  from  which  royalty  could  afford  no  refuge.  Carbajal,  Anales, 
MS.,  loc.  mult. 

a  The  only  exception  to  these  remarks  was  that  afforded  by  the 
infanta  Joanna,  whose  unfortunate  eccentricities,  developed  in  later 
life,  must  be  imputed,  indeed,  to  bodily  infirmity. 


ALLIANCES  AND  DEA  TIIS. 


345 


vent  of  Santa  Clara,  but  had  permitted  her  to  assume 
a  royal  state  and  subscribe  herself  "I  the  Queen." 
This  empty  insult  he  accompanied  with  more  serious 
efforts  to  form  such  a  foreign  alliance  for  the  liberated 
princess  as  should  secure  her  the  support  of  some  arm 
more  powerful  than  his  own,  and  enable  her  to  renew 
the  struggle  for  her  inheritance  with  better  chance  of 
success.'  These  flagrant  proceedings  had  provoked 
the  admonitions  of  the  Roman  see,  and  had  formed 
the  topic,  as  may  be  believed,  of  repeated,  though 
ineffectual,  remonstrance  from  the  court  of  Castile.* 

It  seemed  probable  that  the  union  of  the  pvmctss 
of  Asturias  with  the  heir  of  Portugal,  as  originally  pro- 
vided by  the  treaty  of  Alcantara,  would  so  far  identify 
the  interests  of  the  respective  parties  as  to  remove  all 
further  cause  of  disquietude.  The  new  bride  was  re- 
ceived in  Portugal  in  a  spirit  which  gave  cordial  assur- 
ance of  these  friendly  relations  for  the  future ;  and  the 
court  of  Lisbon  celebrated  the  auspicious  nuptials  with 
the  gorgeous  magnificence  for  which,  at  this  period  o' 
its  successful  enterprise,  it  was  distinguished  above  every 
other  court  in  Christendom. s     (Nov.  22d,  1490.) 

3  Nine  different  matches  were  proposed  for  Joanna  in  the  course  of 
her  life ;  but  they  all  vanished  into  air,  and  "  the  excellent  lady," 
as  she  was  usually  called  by  the  Portuguese,  died  as  she  had  lived, 
in  single  blessedness,  at  the  ripe  age  of  sixty-eight.  In  the  Mem. 
de  la  Acad,  de  Hist.,  torn,  vi.,  the  19th  Ilustracion  is  devoted  to  this 
topic,  in  regard  to  which  Father  Florez  shows  sufficient  ignorance,  or 
inaccuracy.     Reynas  Cath61icas,  torn.  ii.  p.  780. 

4  Instructions  reluiing  to  this  matter,  written  with  the  queen's  own 
hand,  still  exist  in  the  Archives  of  Simancas.  Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de 
Hist.,  ubi  supra. 

s  La  Cl^de,  Histoire  de  Portugal,  torn.  iv.  p.  100.  The  Portuguese 
historian,  Faria  y  Sousa,  expends  half  a  dozen  folio  pages  on  these 


,1 


I  ■   J 


I 


346 


THE  ROYAL   FAMILY, 


Alonso's  death,  a  few  months  after  this  event,  how- 
ever, blighted  the  fair  hopes  which  had  begun  to  open 
of  a  more  friendly  feeling  between  the  two  countries. 
His  unfortunate  widow,  unable  to  endure  the  scenes  of 
her  short-lived  happiness,  soon  withdrew  into  her  own 
country,  to  seek  such  consolation  as  she  could  find  in 
the  bosom  of  her  family.  There,  abandoning  herself 
to  the  melanjholy  regrets  to  which  her  serious  and 
pensive  tempe;  naturally  disposed  her,  she  devoted  her 
hours  to  works  of  piety  and  benevolence,  resolved  to 
enter  no  more  into  engagements  which  had  thrown  so 
dark  a  cloud  over  the  morning  of  her  life.* 

On  King  John's  death,  in  1495,  the  crown  of  Por- 
tugal devolved  on  Emanuel,  that  enlightened  monarch 
who  had  the  glory  in  the  very  commencement  of  his 
reign  of  solving  the  grand  problem,  which  had  so  long 
perplexed  the  world,  of  the  existence  of  an  undiscov- 
ered passage  to  the  East.  This  prince  had  conceived  a 
passion  for  the  young  and  beautiful  Isabella  during  her 
brief  residence  in  Lisbon;  and  soon  after  his  accession 
to  the  throne  he  despatched  an  embassy  to  the  Spanish 
court  inviting  her  to  share  it  with  him.  But  the  princess, 
wedded  to  the  memory  of  her  early  love,  declined  the 
proposals,  notwithstanding  they  were  strongly  seconded 
by  the  wishes  of  her  parents,  who,  however,  were  un- 
royal revelries,  which  cost  six  months'  preparation,  and  taxei  the  wits 
of  the  most  finished  artists  and  artificers  in  France,  England,  Flanders, 
Castile,  and  Portugal.  (Europa  Portuguesa,  torn.  ii.  pp.  452  at  seq.) 
We  see,  throughout,  the  same  luxury  of  spectacle,  the  same  elegant 
games  of  chivalry,  as  the  tilt  of  reeds,  the  rings,  and  the  like,  which 
the  Castilians  adopted  from  the  Spanish  Arabs.  • 

*  Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  tom.  v.  fol.  38. — Abarca,  Reyes 
de  Aragon,  tom.  ii.  fol.  312. 


ALLIANCES  AND  DEATHS. 


347 


ent,  how- 
n  to  open 
countries, 
scenes  of 
)  her  own 
Id  find  in 
ig  herself 
rious  and 
:voted  her 
jsolved  to 
thrown  so 

n  of  Por- 

1  monarch 

ent  of  his 

id  so  long 

undiscov- 

inceived  a 

luring  her 

5  accession 

le  Spanish 

e  princess, 

clined  the 

seconded 

were  un- 

ixei  the  wits 
nd,  Flanders, 
452  et  seq.) 
same  elegant 
e  like,  which 

barca,  Reyes 


willing  to  constrain  their  daughter's  inclinations  on  so 
delicate  a  point,  trusting  perhaps  to  the  effects  of  time 
and  the  p)erseverance  of  her  royal  suitor.' 

In  the  mean  while,  the  Catholic  sovereigns  were 
occupied  with  negotiations  for  the  settlement  of  the 
other  members  of  their  family.  The  ambitious  schemes 
of  Charles  the  Eighth  (-<f;iblished  a  community  of  in- 
terests among  the  gren  iropean  states,  such  as  had 
never  before  existed,  or,  ai  least,  been  understood;  and 
the  intimate  relations  thus  introduced  naturally  led 
to  intermarriages  between  the  principal  powers,  who 
until  this  period  seem  to  have  been  severed  almost 
as  far  asunder  as  if  oceans  had  rolled  between  them. 
The  Spanish  monarchs,  in  particular,  had  rarely  gone 
beyond  the  limits  of  the  Peninsula  for  their  family 
alliances.  The  new  confederacy  into  which  Spain  had 
entered  now  opened  the  way  to  more  remote  connec- 
tions, which  were  destined  to  exercise  a  permanent  in- 
fluence on  the  future  politics  of  Europe.  It  was  while 
Charles  the  Eighth  was  wasting  his  time  at  Naples  that 
the  marriages  were  arranged  between  the  royal  houses 
of  Spain  and  Austria,  by  which  the  weight  of  these 

1  Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  torn.  v.  fol.  78,  82.  —  La  Clftde, 
Hist,  de  Portugal,  torn.  iv.  p.  95.  —  Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  epist. 
146.  —  Martyr,  in  a  letter  written  at  the  close  of  1496,  thus  speaks  of 
the  princess  Isabella's  faithful  attachment  to  her  husband's  memory  : 
"Mira  fuit  hujus  fceminoe  in  abjiciendis  secundis  nuptiis  constantia. 
Tanta  est  ejus  modestia,  tanta  vidualis  castitas,  ut  nee  mensa  post 
mariti  mortem  comederit,  nee  lauti  quicquam  degustaverit.  Jejuniis 
sese  vigiliisque  ita  maceravit,  ut  sicco  stipite  siccior  sit  efft-cta.  Suffulta 
rubore  perturbatur,  quandocunque  de  jugali  fhalanio  senno  iiite.xitur. 
Parentum  tamen  aliquando  precibus,  veluti  olfacimus.  inflectetur. 
Viget  fama,  futuram  vestri  regis  Emmanuelis  uxorem."     Epist.  171. 


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348 


THE  ROYAL    FAMILY. 


great  powers  was  thrown  into  the  same  scale,  and  the 
balance  of  Europe  unsettled  for  the  greater  part  of  the 
following  century." 

The  treaty  provided  that  Prince  John,  the  heir  of  the 
Spanish  monarchies,  then  in  his  eighteenth  year,  should 
be  united  with  the  princess  Margaret,  daughter  of  the 
emperor  Maximilian,  and  that  the  archduke  Philip,  his 
son  and  heir,  and  sovereign  of  the  Low  Countries  in  his 
mother's  right,  should  marry  Joanna,  second  daughter 
of  Ferdinand  and  Isabella.  No  dowry  was  to  be  re- 
quired with  either  princess.' 

In  the  course  of  the  following  year,  arrangements 
were  also  concluded  for  the  marriage  of  the  youngest 
daughter  of  the  Castilian  sovereigns  with  a  prince  of 
the  royal  house  of  England,  the  first  example  of  the 
kmd  for  more  than  a  century.'"  Ferdinand  had  culti- 
vated the  good  will  of  Henry  the  Seventh,  in  the  hope 
of  drawing  him  into  the  confederacy  against  the  French 
monarch,  and  in  this  had  not  wholly  failed,  although 
the  wary  king  seems  to  have  come  into  it  rather  as  a 

•  Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  torn.  v.  fol.  63. 

»  Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  torn.  v.  lib.  2,  cap.  5.  —  Ferreros, 
Hist.  d'Espagne,  torn.  viii.  p.  160. 

■o  I  believe  there  is  no  instance  of  such  a  union,  save  that  of  John 
of  Gaunt,  duke  of  Lancaster,  with  Dofia  Constanza,  daughter  of  Peter 
the  Cruel,  in  1371,  from  whom  Queen  Isabella  was  lineally  descended 
on  the  Other's  side.  The  title  of  Prince  of  Asturias,  appropriated  to 
the  heir  apparent  of  Castile,  was  first  created  for  the  infant  Don 
Henry,  afterwards  Henry  HI.,  on  occasion  of  his  marriage  with  John 
of  Gaunt's  daughter,  in  1388.  It  was  professedly  in  imitation  of  the 
English  title  of  Prince  of  Wales ;  and  Asturias  was  selected,  as  that 
portion  of  the  ancient  Gothic  monarchy  which  had  never  bowed 
beneath  the  Saracen  yoke.  Florez,  Reynas  Cath61icas,  torn.  ii.  pp. 
708-715. — Mendoza,  Dignidades,  lib.  3,  cap.  23. 


ALLIANCES  AND  DEATHS. 


349 


silent  partner,  if  we  may  so  say,  than  with  the  inten- 
tion of  affording  any  open  or  very  active  co-operation." 
The  relations  of  amity  between  the  two  courts  were  still 
further  strengthened  by  the  treaty  of  marriage  above 
alluded  to,  finally  adjusted  October  ist,  1 496,  and  rati- 
fied the  following  year,  between  Arthur,  prince  of  Wales, 
and  the  infanta  Doila  Catalina,  conspicuous  in  English 
history,  equally  for  her  misfortunes  and  her  virtues,  as 
Catharine  of  Aragon."    The  French  viewed  with  no 

»»  Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  lib.  2,  cap.  25, — Rymer,  Foedera 
(London,  1727),  vol.  xii.  pp.  638-642.  —  Ferdinand  used  his  good 
offices  to  mediate  a  peace  between  Henry  VH.  and  the  king  of  Scots ; 
and  it  is  a  proof  of  the  respect  entertained  for  him  by  both  these  mon- 
archs,  that  they  agreed  to  refer  their  disputes  to  his  arbitration.  ( Ry- 
mer, Foedera,  vol.  xii.  p.  671.)  "And  so,"  says  the  old  chronicler  Hall, 
of  the  English  prince,  "  beying  confederate  and  alied  by  treatie  and 
league  with  al  his  neighbors,  he  gratefied  with  his  moost  heartie  thanks 
kyng  Ferdinand  and  the  quene  his  wife,  to  which  woman  none  other 
was  comparable  in  her  tyme,  for  that  they  were  the  mediators,  organes, 
and  instrumentes  by  the  which  the  truce  was  concluded  betwene  the 
Scottish  kynge  and  him,  and  rewarded  his  ambassadoure  moost  liber- 
ally and  bountefuUy."     Chronicle,  p.  483. 

"  See  the  marriage  treaty  in  Rymer.  (Foedera,  vol.  xii.  pp.  658- 
666.)  The  contract  had  been  arranged  between  the  Spanish  and 
English  courts  as  far  back  as  March,  1489,  when  the  elder  of  the  par- 
ties had  not  yet  reached  the  fifth  year  of  her  age.  This  was  confirmed 
by  another,  more  full  and  definite,  in  the  following  year,  1490.  By  this 
treaty  it  was  stipulated  that  Catharine's  portion  should  be  200,000  gold 
crowns,  one-half  to  be  paid  down  at  the  date  of  her  marriage,  and 
the  remainder  in  two  equal  payments  in  the  course  of  the  two  years 
ensuing.  The  prince  of  Wales  was  to  settle  on  her  one-third  of  the 
revenues  of  the  principality  of  Wales,  the  dukedom  of  Cornwall, 
and  the  earldom  of  Chester.     Rymer,  Foedera,  vol.  xii.  pp.  411-417,* 


*  [For  the  details  of  the  negotiation  which  preceded  the  marriage 
treaty, — characterized  by  more  than  the  usual  amount  of  meanness 
and  deceit,  especially  on  the  side  of  Henry, — see  Bergenroth.  Letters, 
Despatches,  and  State  Paperr>,  vol.  i.  In  the  Supplementary  Volume  the 


3SO 


THE  ROYAL  FAMILY. 


little  jealousy  the  progress  of  these  various  negotiations, 
which  they  zealously  endeavored  to  thwart  by  all  the 
artifices  of  diplomacy.  But  King  Ferdinand  had  suf- 
ficient address  to  secure  in  his  interests  persons  of  the 
higliest  credit  at  the  courts  of  Henry  and  Maximilian, 
who  promptly  acquainted  him  with  the  intrigues  of  the 
French  government  and  effectually  aided  in  counter- 
acting them.'' 

The  English  connection  was  necessarily  deferred  for 
some  years,  on  account  of  the  youth  of  the  parties, 
neither  of  whom  exceeded  eleven  years  of  age.  No 
such  impediment  existed  in  regard  to  the  German 
alliances,  and  measures  were  taken  at  once  for  providing 
a  suitable  conveyance  for  the  infanta  Joanna  into  Flan- 
ders, which  should  bring  back  the  princess  Margaret 
on  its  return.  By  the  end  of  summer,  in  1496,  a  fleet 
consisting  of  one  hundred  and  thirty  vessels,  large  and 
small,  strongly  manned  and  thoroughly  equipped  with 
all  the  means  of  defence  against  the  French  cruisers, 
was  got  ready  for  sea  in  the  ports  of  Guipuscoa  and 
Biscay. "*    The  whole  was  placed  under  the  direction 

^  "  Procuro,"  says  Zurita,  "  que  se  effectuassen  los  matrimonios  de 
sus  hijos,  no  solo  con  promesas,  pero  con  dadivas  que  se  hizieron  a  los 
privados  de  aquellos  principes,  que  en  ello  entendian."  Hist,  del  Rey 
Hernando,  lib.  2,  cap.  3. 

*4  Historians  differ,  as  usual,  as  to  the  strength  of  this  armament. 
Martyr  makes  it  no  vessels,  and  10,000  soldiers  (Opus  Epist.,  epist, 
z68) ;  while  Bemaldez  carries  the  number  to  130  sail,  and  25,000  sol- 


learned  editor  has  devoted  much  space  to  documents  relating  to  Cath- 
arine's life  in  England  from  1501  to  1510,  and  to  an  investigation  into 
her  character  and  conduct  during  that  period.  The  views  which  he 
advances — founded  on  testimony  interesting  and  important  indeed,  but 
inconclusive  alike  from  want  of  fulness  and  its  often  doubtful  nature — 
have  not  been  generally  accepted. — ED.] 


ALLIANCES  AND  DEATHS. 


351 


of  Don  Fadrique  Enriquez,  admiral  of  Castile,  who 
carried  with  him  a  splendid  show  of  chivalry,  chiefly 
drawn  from  the  northern  provinces  of  the  kingdom.  A 
more  gallant  and  beautiful  armada  never  before  quitted 
the  shores  of  Spain.  The  infanta  Joanna,  attended  by 
a  numerous  suite,  arrived  on  board  the  fleet  towards  the 
end  of  August,  at  the  port  of  Laredo,  on  the  eastern 
borders  of  Asturias,  where  she  took  a  last  farewell  of 
the  queen  her  mother,  who  had  postponed  the  hour 
of  separation  as  long  as  possible,  by  accompanying  her 
daughter  to  the  place  of  embarkation. 

The  weather,  soon  after  her  departure,  became  ex- 
tremely rough  and  tempestuous;  and  it  was  so  long 
before  any  tidings  of  the  squadron  reached  the  queen, 
that  her  affectionate  heart  was  filled  with  the  most  dis- 
tressing apprehensions.  She  sent  for  the  oldest  and 
most  experienced  navigators  in  these  boisterous  north- 
ern seas,  consulting  them,  says  Martyr,  day  and  night 
on  the  probable  causes  of  delay,  the  prevalent  courses 
of  the  winds  at  that  season,  and  the  various  difficulties 
and  dangers  of  the  voyage ;  bitterly  regretting  that  the 
troubles  with  France  prevented  any  other  means  of 
communication  than  the  treacherous  element  to  which 
she  had  trusted  her  daughter. '5  Her  spirits  were  still 
further  depressed  at  this  juncture  by  the  death  of  her 


diers  (Reyes  Catolicos,  MS.,  cap.  153).  Ferreras  adopts  the  latter 
estimate  (torn.  viii.  p.  173).  Martyr  may  have  intended  only  the  gal- 
leys and  regular  troops,  while  Bernaldez,  more  loosely,  included  ves- 
sels and  seamen  of  every  description.  See  also  the  royal  ordinances, 
ap.  Coleccion  de  Cedulas  (torn.  i.  nos.  79,  80,  82),  whose  language 
implies  a  very  large  number,  without  specifying  it.  ' 

*5  Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  epist.  172. — Carbajal,  Anales,  MS., 
alio  1496. — Mariana,  Hist,  de  Espana,  torn.  ii.  lib.  26,  cap.  12. 


35a 


THE  ROYAL  FAMILY. 


own  mother,  the  dowager  Isabella,  who,  under  the 
mental  infirmity  with  which  she  had  been  visited  for 
many  years,  had  always  experienced  the  most  devoted 
attention  from  her  daughter,  who  ministered  to  her 
necessities  with  her  own  hands,  and  watched  over  her 
declining  years  with  the  most  tender  solicitude.'* 

At  length,  the  long-desired  intelligence  came  of  the 
arrival  of  the  Castilian  fleet  at  its  place  of  destination. 
It  had  been  so  grievously  shattered,  however,  by  tem- 
pests, as  to  require  being  refitted  in  the  ports  of  Eng- 
land. Several  of  the  vessels  were  lost,  and  many  of 
Joanna's  attendants  perished  from  the  inclemency  of 
the  weather  and  the  numerous  hardships  to  which  they 
were  exposed.  The  infanta,  however,  happily  reached 
Flanders  in  safety,  and,  not  long  after,  her  nuptials 
with  the  archduke  Philip  were  celebrated  at  Lille  with 
all  suitable  pomp  and  solemnity. 

The  fleet  was  detained  until  the  ensuing  winter,  to 
transport  the  destined  bride  of  the  young  prince  of 
Asturias  to  Spain.  This  lady,  who  had  been  affianced 
in  her  cradle  to  Charles  the  Eighth  of  France,  had 
received  her  education  in  the  court  of  Paris.  On  her 
intended  husband's  marriage  with  the  heiress  of  Brit- 
tany, she  had  been  returned  to  her  native  land  under 
circumstances  of  indignity  never  to  be  forgiven  by  the 
house  of  Austria.  She  was  now  in  the  seventeenth  year 
of  her  age,  and  had  already  given  ample  promise  of 
those  uncommon  powers  of  mind  which  distinguished 
her  in  riper  years,  and  of  which  she  has  left  abundant 
evidence  in  various  written  compositions.'' 

««  Carbajal,  Anales,  MS,,  afio  1496. — Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist., 
epist.  172. 
«7  Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  epist.  174. — Garibay,  Compendio,  torn. 


ALLIANCES  AND  DEATHS, 


353 


On  her  passage  to  Spain,  in  midwinter,  the  fleet 
encountered  such  tremendous  gales  that  part  of  it  was 
shipwrecked,  and  Margaret's  vessel  had  wellnigh  foun- 
dered. She  retained,  however,  sufficient  composure 
amidst  the  perils  of  her  situation  to  indite  her  own 
epitaph,  in  the  form  of  a  pleasant  distich,  which  Fon- 
tenelle  has  made  the  subject  of  one  of  his  amusing 
dialogues,  where  he  affects  to  consider  the  fortitude 
displayed  by  her  at  this  awful  moment  as  surpassing  that 
of  the  philosophic  Adrian  in  his  dying  hour,  or  the 
vaunted  heroism  of  Cato  of  Utica.*'  Fortunately, 
however,  Margaret's  epitaph  was  not  needed ;  she 
arrived  in  safety  at  the  port  of  Santander,  early  in 
March,  1497. 

The  young  prince  of  Asturias,  accompanied  by  the 
king  his  father,  hastened  towards  the  north  to  receive 
his  royal  mistress,  whom  they  met  and  escorted  to 
Burgos,  where  she  was  received  with  the  highest  marks 
of  satisfaction   by  the  queen   and   the  whole  court. 

ii.  lib.  19,  cap.  6. — Gaillard,  Riva1it6,  torn.  iii.  pp.  416,  423. — Sandoval, 
Historia  del  Emperador  Carlos  V.  (Amberes,  1681),  torn.  i.  p.  3. — 
These,  comprehending  her  verses,  public  addresses,  and  discourse  on 
her  own  Ufe,  have  been  collected  into  a  single  volume,  under  the  title 
of  "  La  Couronne  Margaritique,"  Lyons,  1549,  by  the  French  writer 
Jean  la  Maire  de  Beiges,  her  faithful  follower,  whose  greatest  glory  it 
is  to  have  been  the  instructor  of  Clement  Marot. 
»8  Fontenelle,  CEuvres,  tom.  i.  dial.  4. 

"  Ci  gist  Margot,  la  gentil'  damoiselle 
Qu'a  d«ux  maris,  et  encore  est  pucelle." 

It  must  be  allowed  that  Margaret's  quiet  nonchalance  was  much 
more  suited  to  Fontenelle's  habitual  taste  than  the  imposing  scene  of 
Cato's  death.  Indeed,  the  French  satirist  was  so  averse  to  scenes  of 
all  kinds,  that  he  has  contrived  to  find  a  ridiculous  side  in  this  last  act 
of  the  patriot  Roman. 
Vol.  II.— 23 


354 


THE  ROYAL  FAMILY. 


Preparations  were  instantly  made  for  solemnizing  the 
nuptials  of  the  royal  pair,  after  the  expiration  of  Lent, 
in  a  style  of  magnificence  such  as  had  never  before 
been  witnessed  under  the  present  reign.  The  marriage 
ceremony  took  place  on  the  3d  of  April,  and  was  per- 
formed by  the  archbishop  of  Toledo  in  the  presence 
of  the  grandees  and  principal  nobility  of  Castile,  the 
foreign  ambassadors,  and  the  delegates  from  Aragon. 
Among  these  latter  were  the  magistrates  of  the  prin- 
cipal cities,  clothed  in  their  municipal  insignia  and 
crimson  robes  of  office,  who  seem  to  have  had  quite 
as  important  parts  assigned  them  by  their  democratic 
communities,  in  this  and  all  similar  pageants,  as  any 
of  the  nobility  or  gentry.  The  nuptials  were  followed 
by  a  brilliant  succession  q{ fetes,  tourneys,  tilts  of  reeds, 
and  other  warlike  spectacles,  in  which  the  matchless 
chivalry  of  Spain  poured  into  the  lists  to  display  their 
magnificence  and  prowess  in  the  presence  of  their 
future  queen.  *»  The  chronicles  of  the  day  remark  on 
the  striking  contrast  exhibited  at  these  entertainments 
between  the  gay  and  familiar  manners  of  Margaret  and 
her  Flemish  nobles  and  the  pomp  and  stately  ceremo- 
nial of  the  Castilian  court,  to  which,  indeed,  the  Aus- 
trian princess,  nurtured  as  she  had  been  in  a  Parisian 
atmosphere,  could  never  be  wholly  reconciled.* 

«9  That  these  were  not  mere  holiday  sports,  was  proved  by  the  mel- 
ancholy death  of  Alonso  de  Cardenas,  son  of  the  comendador  of 
Leon,  who  lost  his  life  in  a  tourney.  Oviedo,  Quincuagenas,  MS.,  bat. 
I,  quinc.  2,  dial.  i. 

»  Carbajal,  Anales,  MS.,  ano  1497. — Mariana,  Hist,  de  E^pafia, 
torn.  ii.  lib.  26,  cap.  16. — Lanuza,  Historias,  lib.  i,  cap.  8. — Abarca, 
Reyes  de  Aragon,  torn.  ii.  fol.  330. — "  Y  aunque,"  says  the  last  author, 
"  a  la  princessa  se  le  dexaron  todos  sus  criados,  estilos,  y  entreteni« 


ALLIANCES  AND  DEATHS. 


355 


The  marriage  of  the  heir  apparent  could  not  have 
been  celebrated  at  a  more  auspicious  period.  It  was 
in  the  midst  of  negotiations  for  a  general  peace,  when 
the  nation  might  reasonably  hope  to  taste  the  sweets 
of  repose  after  so  many  uninterrupted  years  of  war. 
Every  bosom  swelled  with  exultation  in  contemplating 
the  glorious  destinies  of  the  country  under  the  benefi- 
cent sway  of  a  prince,  the  first  heir  of  the  hitherto 
divided  monarchies  of  Spain.  Alas  1  at  the  moment 
when  Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  blessed  in  the  affections 
of  their  people,  and  surrounded  by  all  the  trophies  of 
a  glorious  reign,  seemed  to  have  reached  the  very  zenith 
of  human  felicity,  they  were  doomed  to  receive  one 
of  those  mournful  lessons  which  admonish  us  that  all 
earthly  prosperity  is  but  a  dream." 

Not  long  after  Prince  John's  marriage,  the  sovereigns 


oiientos,  se  la  advirtio,  que  en  las  ceremonias  no  havia  de  tratar  a  las 
personas  Reales,  y  Grandes  con  la  familiaridad  y  llaneza  de  las  casas 
de  Austria,  Borgofiia,  y  Francia,  sino  con  la  gravedad,  y  mesurada 
autoridad  de  los  Reyes  y  naciones  de  Espafia !"  The  sixth  volume  of 
the  Spanish  Academy  of  History  contains  an  inventory,  taken  from 
the  Archives  of  Simancas,  of  the  rich  plate  and  jewels  presented  to 
the  princess  Margaret  on  the  day  of  her  marriage.  They  are  said  to 
be  "  of  such  value  and  perfect  workmanship  that  the  like  was  never 
before  seen."  (Ilust.  ii,  pp.  338-342.)  Isabella  had  turned  these 
baubles  to  good  account  in  the  war  of  Granada.  She  was  too  simple 
in  her  taste  to  attich  much  value  to  luxury  of  apparel. 

"«  It  is  precisely  this  period,  or  rather  the  whole  period  from  1493  to 
1497,  which  Oviedo  selects  as  that  of  the  greatest  splendor  and  fes- 
tivity at  the  court  of  the  Catholic  sovereigns.  "  El  afio  de  1493,  y 
uno  6  dos  despues,  y  aun  hasta  el  de  1497  anos  fue  cuando  la  corte 
de  los  Reyes  Catolicos  Don  Fernando  e  Dona  Isabel  de  gloriosa 
memoria,  mas  alegres  tiempos  e  mas  regozijados,  vino  en  su  corte,  ^ 
mas  encumbrada  andubo  la  gala  e  las  fiestas  k  servicios  de  galanes 
^damas."    Quincuagenas,  MS.,  bat.  i,  quinc.  4,  dial.  44. 


356 


THE  ROYAL   FAMILY. 


had  the  satisfaction  to  witness  that  of  their  daughter 
Isabella,  who,  notwithstanding  her  repugnance  to  a 
second  union,  had  yielded  at  length  to  the  -urgent 
entreaties  of  her  parents  to  receive  the  addresses  of  her 
Portuguese  lover.  She  required  as  the  price  of  this, 
however,  that  Emanuel  should  first  banish  the  Jews 
from  his  dominions,  where  they  had  bribed  a  resting- 
place  since  their  expulsion  from  Spain ;  a  circumstance 
to  which  the  superstitious  princess  imputed  the  misfor- 
tunes which  had  fallen  of  late  on  the  royal  house  of 
Portugal.  Emanuel,  whose  own  liberal  mind  revolted 
at  this  unjust  and  impolitic  measure,  was  weak  enough 
to  allow  his  passion  to  get  the  better  of  his  principles, 
and  passed  sentence  of  exile  on  every  Israelite  in  his 
kingdom;  furnishing,  perhaps,  the  only  example  in 
which  love  has  been  made  one  of  the  thousand  motives 
for  persecuting  this  unhappy  race." 

The  marriage,  ushered  in  under  such  ill-omened  aus- 
pices, was  celebrated  at  the  frontier  town  of  Valencia 
de  Alcantara,  in  the  presence  of  the  Catholic  sover- 
eigns, without  pomp  or  parade  of  any  kind.  While 
they  were  detained  there,  an  express  arrived  from 
Salamanca,  bringing  tidings  of  the  dangerous  illness 
of  their  son,  the  prince  of  Asturias.  He  had  been 
seized  with  a  fever  in  the  midst  of  the  public  rejoicings 
to  which  his  arrival  with  his  youthful  bride  in  that  city 
had  given  rise.  The  symptoms  speedily  assumed  an 
alarming  character.  The  prince's  constitution,  natu- 
rally delicate,  though  strengthened  by  a  life  of  habitual 

»  Faria  y  Sousa,  Europa  Portuguesa,  torn.  ii.  pp.  498,  499. — La 
Glide,  Hist,  de  Portugal,  torn.  iv.  p.  95. — Zurita,  torn.  v.  lib.  3,  cap.  6. 
— Lanuza,  Hi^torias,  ubi  supra. 


ALLIANCES  AND  DEATHS. 


357 


temperance,  sunk  under  the  violence  of  the  attack; 
and  when  his  father,  who  posted  with  all  possible  ex- 
{^edition  to  Salamanca,  arrived  there,  no  hopes  were 
entertained  of  his  recovery.'' 

Ferdinand,  however,  endeavored  to  cheer  his  son 
with  hopes  which  he  did  not  feel  himself;  but  the 
young  prince  told  him  that  it  was  too  late  to  be 
deceived  ;  that  he  was  prepared  to  part  with  a  world 
which,  in  its  best  estate,  was  filled  with  vanity  and  vex- 
ation ;  and  that  all  he  now  desired  was  that  his  parents 
might  feel  the  same  sincere  resignation  to  the  divine 
will  which  he  experienced  himself.  Ferdinand  gathered 
new  fortitude  from  the  example  of  his  heroic  son,  whose 
presages  were  unhappily  too  soon  verified.  He  expired 
on  the  4th  of  October,  1497,  in  the  twentieth  year  of 
his  age,  in  the  same  spirit  of  Christian  philosophy 
which  he  had  displayed  during  his  whole  illness. *• 

•sCarbajal,  Anales,  MS.,  afio  1497.  —  Florer,  Reynas  Cath61icas, 
torn.  ii.  pp.  846,  848. — Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  torn.  v.  fol.  127, 
128. — La  Glide,  Hist,  de  Portugal,  torn.  iv.  p.  loi. — The  physicians 
recommended  a  temporary  separation  of  John  from  his  young  bride ; 
a  remedy,  however,  which  the  queen  opposed  from  conscientious  scru- 
ples somewhat  singular.  "  Hortantur  medici  Reginam,  hortatur  et 
Rex,  ut  a  principis  latere  Margaritam  aliquando  semoveat,  interpellet. 
Inducias  precantur.  Protestantur  periculum  ex  frequenti  copula  ephebo 
imminere ;  qualiter  eum  suxerit,  quamve  subtristis  incedat,  consideret 
iterum  atque  iterum  monent ;  medullas  laedi,  stomachum  hebetari  se 
(entire  Reginae  renunciant.  Intercidat,  dum  licet,  obstetque  principiis, 
instant.  Nil  proficiunt.  Respondet  Regina,  homines  non  oportere, 
quos  Deus  jugali  vinculo  jiinxerit,  separare."  Peter  Martyr,  Opus 
Epist.,  epist.  176. 

*4  Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  epist.  182. — L.  Marineo,  Cosas  memo- 
rabies,  fol,  182. — Carbajal,  Anales,  MS.,  afto  1497. — Oviedo,  Quin- 
cuagenas,  MS.,  dial,  de  Deza. — Peter  Martyr,  in  more  of  a  classic  than 
a  Christian  vein,  refers  Prince  John's  composure  in  his  latter  hours  to 


358 


THE  ROYAL   FAMILY. 


Ferdinand,  apprehensive  of  the  effect  which  the 
abrupt  intelligence  of  t'.iis  calamity  might  have  on  the 
queen,  caused  letters  to  be  sent  at  brief  intervals,  con- 
taining accounts  of  the  gradual  decline  of  the  prince's 
health,  so  as  to  prepare  her  for  the  inevitable  stroke. 
Isabella,  however,  who  through  all  her  long  career  of 
prosperous  fortune  may  be  said  to  have  kept  her  heart 
in  constant  training  for  the  dark  hour  of  adversity, 
received  the  fatal  tidings  in  a  spirit  of  meek  and  humble 
acquiescence,  testifying  her  resignation  in  the  beautiful 
language  of  Scripture,  "The  Lord  hath  given,  and  the 
Lord  hath  taken  away,  blessed  be  his  name !""» 

"Thus,"  says  Martyr,  who  had  the  melancholy  sat- 
isfaction of  rendering  the  last  sad  offices  to  his  royal 
pupil,  "  was  laid  low  the  hope  of  all  Spain."  "Never 
was  there  a  death,"  says  another  chronicler,  "which 
occasioned  such  deep  and  general  lamentation  through- 
out the  land."  All  the  unavailing  honors  which  affec- 
tion could  devise  were  paid  to  his  memory.  His  funeral 
obsequies  were  celebrated  with  melancholy  splendor, 
and  his  remains  deposited  in  the  noble  Dominican 
monastery  of  St.  Thomas  at  Avila,  which  had  been 
erected  by  his  parents.     The  court  put  on  a  new  and 

his  familiarity  with  the  divine  Aristotle :  "^tatem  quae  ferebat  super- 
abat ;  nee  mirum  tamen.  Perlegerat  nainque  divini  Aristotelis  pleraque 
volumina,"  etc.    Ubi  supra. 

»s  Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  epist.  183. — Martyr  draws  an  afiecting 
picture  of  the  anguish  of  the  bereaved  parents,  which  betrayed  itself 
in  looks  more  eloquent  than  words :  "  Reges  tantam  dissimulare  serum- 
nam  nituntur ;  ast  nos  prostratum  in  internis  ipsorum  animum  cemi- 
mus;  oculos  alter  in  faciem  alterius  crebro  conjiciunt,  in  propatulo 
sedentes.  Unde  quid  lateat  proditur.  Nimirum  tamen,  desinerent 
humana  came  vestiti  esse  homines,  essentque  adamante  duriores,  nisi 
quid  amiserint  scntirent." 


ALLIANCES  AND  DEATHS. 


359 


deeper  mourning  than  that  hitherto  used,  as  if  to  tes- 
tify their  unwonted  grief. ■•  All  offices,  public  and 
private,  were  closed  for  forty  days ;  and  sable-colored 
banners  were  suspended  from  the  walls  and  portals  of 
the  cities.  Such  extraordinary  tokens  of  public  sorrow 
bear  strong  testimony  to  the  interest  felt  in  the  young 
prince,  independently  of  his  exalted  station  ;  similar 
and  perhaps  piore  unequivocal  evidence  of  his  worth  is 
afforded  by  abundance  of  contemporary  notices,  not 
merely  in  works  designed  for  the  public,  but  in  private 
correspondence.  The  learned  Martyr,  in  particular, 
whose  situation  as  Prince  John's  preceptor  afforded 
him  the  best  opportunities  of  observation,  is  unbounded 
in  commendations  of  his  royal  pupil,  whose  extraor- 
dinary promise  of  intellectual  and  moral  excellence 
had  furnished  him  with  the  happiest — alas !  delusive — 
auguries  for  the  future  destiny  of  his  country.*' 

By  the  death  of  John  without  heirs,  the  succession 
devolved  on  his  eldest  sister,  the  queen  of  Portugal.* 

*  Blancas,  Coronaciones  de  los  serenissimos  Reyes  de  Aragon  (Zara- 
goza,  1641),  lib.  3,  cap.  18. — G.iribay,  Compendio,  torn.  ii.  lib.  19,  cap. 
6. — Sackcloth  was  substituted  for  the  white  serge  which  till  this  time 
had  been  used  as  the  mourning  dress. 

■7  Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  epist.  182. — Garibay,  Compendio,  torn, 
ii.  lib.  19,  cap.  6. — L.  Marineo,  Cosjis  memorables,  fol.  182. — Blancas, 
Coronaciones,  p.  248. — It  must  be  allowed  to  furnish  no  mean  proof 
of  the  excellence  of  Prince  John's  heart,  that  it  was  not  corrupted  by 
the  liberal  doses  of  flattery  with  which  his  worthy  tutor  was  in  the 
habit  of  regaling  him  from  time  to  time.  Take  the  beginning  of  one 
of  Martyr's  letters  to  his  pupil,  in  the  following  modest  strain:  "  Mi- 
rande  in  pueritia  senex,  salve.  Quotquot  tecum  versantur  homines, 
sive  genere  poUeant,  sive  ad  obsequium  fortunoe  huniiliores  destinati 
ministri,  te  laudant,  extollunt,  adniirantur."    Opus  EpisL,  epist.  98. 

*  Hopes  were  entertained  of  a  m.ile  heir  at  the  time  of  John's  death) 
as  his  widow  was  left  pregnant ;  but  these  were  frustrated  by  her  being 


i 


1 1' 


360 


rJIE  J? OVAL  FAMILY. 


Intelligence,  however,  was  received,  soon  after  that 
event,  that  the  archduke  Philip,  with  the  re^;tloss  ambi- 
tion which  distinguished  him  in  later  life,  had  assumed 
for  himself  and  his  wife  Joanna  the  title  of  "princes 
of  Castile."  Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  disgusted  with 
this  proceeding,  sent  to  request  the  attendance  of  the 
king  and  queen  of  Portugal  in  Castile,  in  order  to 
secure  a  recognition  of  their  rights  by  tl.o  national 
legislature.  The  royal  pair,  accordingly,  in  obedience 
to  the  summons,  quitted  their  capital  of  Lisbon  early 
in  the  spring  of  1498.  In  their  progress  through  the 
country  they  were  magnificently  entertained  at  the 
castles  of  the  great  Castilian  lords,  and  towards  the 
close  of  April  reached  the  ancient  city  of  Toledo, 
where  the  cortes  had  been  convened  to  receive  them."* 

delivered  of  a  still-born  infant  at  the  end  of  a  few  months.  Margaret 
did  not  continue  long  in  Spain.  She  experienced  the  most  affectionate 
treatment  from  the  king  and  queen,  who  made  her  an  extremely  liberal 
provision.  (Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  torn.  v.  lib.  3,  cap.  4.) 
But  her  Flemish  followers  could  not  reconcile  themselves  to  the  reserve 
and  burdensome  ceremonial  of  the  Castilian  court,  so  different  from 
the  free  and  jocund  life  to  which  they  had  been  accustomed  at  home ; 
and  they  prevailed  on  their  mistress  to  return  to  her  native  land  in  the 
course  of  the  year  1499.  She  was  subsequently  married  to  the  duke 
of  Savoy,  who  died  without  issue  in  less  than  three  years,  and  Mar- 
garet passed  the  remainder  of  her  life  in  widowhood,  being  appointed 
by  her  father,  the  emperor,  to  the  government  of  the  Netherlands, 
which  she  administered  with  ability.    She  died  in  1530. 

"9  Marina  has  transcribed  from  the  archives  of  Toledo  the  writ  of 
summons  to  that  city  on  this  occasion.  Teoria,  tom.  ii.  p.  16. — Zurita, 
Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  tom.  v.  lib.  3,  cap.  18. — BernaldeZj  Reyes 
Cat61icos,  MS.,  cap.  154. — La  Glide,  Hist,  de  Portugal,  tom.  iv.  p> 
101. — Carbajal,  Anales,  MS.,  aiio  1498. — Faria  y  Sousa,  Europa  Por- 
tuguesa,  tom.  ii.  pp,  500,  501. — The  last  writer  expatiates  with  great 
satisfaction  on  the  stately  etiquette  observed  at  the  reception  of  the 


ALLIANCES  AND  DEATHS. 


361 


After  the  usual  oaths  of  recognition  had  been  ten- 
dered, without  opposition,  by  the  different  branches  to 
the  Portuguese  princes,  the  court  adjourned  to  Sara- 
gossa,  where  the  legislature  of  Aragon  was  assembled 
for  a  similar  purpose. 

Some  apprehensions  were  entertained,  however,  of 
the  unfavorable  disposition  of  that  body,  since  the 
succession  of  females  was  not  countenanced  by  the 
ancient  usage  of  the  country;  and  the  Aragonese,  as 
Martyr  remarks  in  one  of  his  Epistles,  "were  well 
known  to  be  a  pertinacious  race,  who  would  leave  no 
stone  unturned,  in  the  maintenance  of  their  constitu- 
tional rights."  30 

These  apprehensions  were  fully  realized;  for  no 
sooner  was  the  object  of  the  present  meeting  laid  be- 
fore cortes  in  a  speech  from  the  throne,  with  which 
parliamentary  business  in  Aragon  was  always  opened, 
than  decided  opposition  was  manifested  to  a  proceed- 
ing which  it  was  declared  had  no  precedent  in  their 
history.  The  succession  of  the  crown,  it  was  con- 
tended, had  been  limited  by  repeated  testaments  of 
their  princes  to  male  heirs;  and  practice  and  public 
sentiment   had   so  far  coincided  with   this,  that   the 


Portuguese  monarchs  and  their  suite  by  the  Spanish  sovereigns. 
"  Queen  Isabella,"  he  says,  "appeared  leaning  on  the  arm  of  her  old 
favorite  Gutierre  de  Cardenas,  comendador  of  Leon,  and  of  a  Por- 
tuguese noble,  Don  Juan  de  Sousa.  The  latter  took  care  to  acquaint 
her  with  the  rank  and  condition  of  each  of  his  countrymen,  as  they 
were  presented,  in  order  that  she  might  the  better  adjust  the  measure 
of  condescension  and  courtesy  due  to  each  ;  a  perilous  obligation,"  he 
continues,  "  with  all  nations,  but  with  the  Portuguese  most  perilous  I" 
30  Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  epist.  194. — Abarca,  Reyes  de  Aragon, 
torn.  ii.  fol.  334. — Mariana,  Hist,  de  Espafta,  torn.  ii.  lib.  37,  cap.  3. 

Q 


tli 


36a 


THE  ROYAL   FAMILY. 


attempted  violation  of  the  rule  by  Peter  the  Fourth,  in 
favor  of  his  own  daughters,  had  plunged  the  nation  in 
a  civil  war.  It  was  further  urged  that  by  the  will  of 
the  very  last  monarch,  John  the  Second,  it  was  provided 
that  the  crown  should  descend  to  the  male  issue  of  his 
son  Ferdinand,  and,  in  default  of  such,  to  the  male 
issue  of  Ferdinand's  daughters,  to  the  entire  exclusion 
of  the  females.  At  all  events,  it  was  better  to  postpone 
the  consideration  of  this  matter  until  the  result  of  the 
queen  of  Portugal's  pregnancy,  then  far  advanced, 
should  be  ascertained;  since,  should  it  prove  to  be  a 
son,  all  doubts  of  constitutional  validity  would  be  re- 
moved. 

In  answer  to  these  objections,  it  was  stated  that  no 
express  law  existed  in  Aragon  excluding  females  from 
the  succession ;  that  an  example  had  already  occurred, 
as  far  back  indeed  as  the  twelfth  century,  of  a  queen 
who  held  the  crown  in  her  own  right  j  that  the  ac- 
knowledged power  of  females  to  transmit  the  right  of 
succession  necessarily  inferred  that  right  existing  in 
themselves;  that  the  present  monarch  had  doubtless  as 
competent  authority  as  his  predecessors  to  regulate  the 
law  of  inheritance,  and  that  his  act,  supported  by  the 
supreme  authority  of  cortes,  might  set  aside  any  former 
disposition  of  the  crown ;  that  this  interference  was 
called  for  by  the  present  opportunity  of  maintaining 
the  permanent  union  of  Castile  and  Aragon,  without 
which  they  must  return  to  their  ancient  divided  state 
and  comparative  insignificance. '' 

3»  Blancas,  Commentarii,  p.  273.  —  Idem,  Coronaciones,  lib.  1,  cap. 
18.  —  Mariana,  Hist,  de  Espafia,  torn.  ii.  lib.  27,  cap.  3.  —  Zurita,  Hist. 
del  Rey  Hernando,  torn.  v.  fol.  55,  56.  —  It  is  remarkable  that  the 


ALLIANCES  AND  DEATHS. 


Z^Z 


These  arguments,  however  cogent,  were  far  from 
being  conclusive  with  the  opposite  party;  and  the 
debate  was  protracted  to  such  length  that  Isabella,  im- 
patient of  an  opposition  to  what  the  practice  in  her 
own  dominions  had  taught  her  to  regard  as  the  inalien- 
able right  of  her  daughter,  inconsiderately  exclaimed, 
**lt  would  be  better  to  reduce  the  country  by  arms  at 
once,  than  endure  this  insolence  of  the  cortes."  To 
which  Antonio  de  Fonseca,  the  same  cavalier  who  had 
spoken  his  mind  so  fearlessly  to  King  Charles  the  Eighth 
on  his  march  to  Naples,  had  the  independence  to  reply, 
*•  That  the  Aragonese  had  only  acted  as  good  and  loyal 
subjects,  who,  as  they  were  accustomed  to  keep  their 
oaths,  considered  well  before  they  took  them  \  and  that 
they  must  certainly  stand  excused  if  they  moved  with 
caution  in  an  affair  which  they  found  so  difficult  to 
justify  by  precedent  in  their  history."**  This  blunt 
expostulation  of  the  honest  courtier,  equally  creditable 
to  the  sovereign  who  could  endure  and  the  subject  who 
could  make  it,  was  received  in  the  frank  spirit  in  which 

Aragonese  should  so  readily  have  acquiesced  in  the  right  of  females  to 
convey  a  title  to  the  crown  which  they  could  not  enjoy  themselves. 
This  was  precisely  the  principle  on  which  Edward  III.  set  up  his  claim 
to  the  throne  of  France,  a  principle  too  repugnant  to  the  commonest 
rules  of  inheritance  to  obtain  any  countenance.  The  exclusion  of 
females  in  Aragon  could  not  pretend  to  be  founded  on  any  express 
law,  as  in  France,  but  the  practice,  with  the  exception  of  a  single  ex- 
ample three  centuries  old,  was  quite  as  uniform. 

32  Blancas,  Coronaciones,  lib.  3,  cap.  18.  —  Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey 
Hernando,  torn.  v.  lib.  3,  cap.  30.  —  It  is  a  proof  of  the  high  esteem  in 
which  Isabella  held  this  independent  statesman,  that  we  find  his  name 
mentioned  in  her  testament  among  half  a  dozen  others  whom  she 
particularly  recommended  to  her  successors  for  their  meritorious  and 
loyal  services.    See  the  document  in  Dormer,  Discursos  varies,  p.  354. 


3^4 


THE  ROYAL  FAMILY. 


it  was  given,  and  probably  opened  Isabella's  eyes  to 
her  own  precipitancy,  as  we  find  no  further  allusion  to 
coercive  measures. 

Before  any  thing  was  determined,  the  discussion  was 
suddenly  brought  to  a  close  by  an  unforeseen  and  most 
melancholy  event, — the  death  of  the  queen  of  Portugal, 
the  unfortunate  subject  of  it.  That  princess  had  pos- 
sessed a  feeble  constitution  from  her  birth,  with  a  strong 
tendency  to  pulmonary  complaints.  She  had  early  felt 
a  presentiment  that  she  should  not  survive  the  birth  of 
her  child ;  this  feeling  strengthened  as  she  approached 
the  period  of  her  delivery ;  and  in  less  than  one  hour 
after  that  event,  which  took  place  on  the  23d  of 
August,  1498,  she  expired  in  the  arms  of  her  afflicted 
parents.'' 

This  blow  was  almost  too  much  for  the  unhappy 
mother,  whose  spirits  had  not  yet  had  time  to  rally 
since  the  death  of  her  only  son.  She,  indeed,  exhibited 
the  outward  marks  of  composure,  testifying  the  entire 
resignation  of  one  who  had  learned  to  rest  her  hopes 
of  happiness  on  a  better  world.  She  schooled  herself 
so  far  as  to  continue  to  take  an  interest  in  all  her  public 
duties,  and  to  watch  over  the  common  weal  with  the 
same  maternal  solicitude  as  before;  but  her  health 
gradually  sunk  under  this  accumulated  load  of  sorrow, 
which  threw  a  deep  shade  of  melancholy  over  the 
evening  of  her  life. 

The  infant,  whose  birth  had  cost  so  dear,  proved  a 
male,  and  received  the  name  of  Miguel,  in  honor  of 

S3  Carbajal,  Anales,  MS.,  aflos  1470,  1498.  —  Florez,  Reynas  Ca- 
th6Iicas,  torn.  ii.  pp.  846,  847. — Faria  y  Sousa,  Europa  Portuguesa, 
torn.  ii.  p.  504. 


ALLIANCES  AND  DEATHS. 


365 


the  saint  on  whose  day  he  first  saw  the  light.  In  order 
to  dissipate  in  some  degree  the  general  gloom  occa- 
sioned by  the  late  catastrophe,. it  was  thought  best  to 
exhibit  the  young  prince  before  the  eyes  of  his  future 
subjects ;  and  he  was  accordingly  borne  in  the  arms  of 
his  nurse,  in  a  magnificent  litter,  through  the  streets  of 
the  city,  escorted  by  the  principal  nobility.  Measures 
were  then  taken  for  obtaining  the  sanction  of  his  legiti- 
mate claims  to  the  crown.  Whatever  doubts  had  been 
i-ntertained  of  the  validity  of  the  mother's  title,  there 
could  be  none  whatever  of  the  child's;  since  those 
who  denied  the  right  of  females  to  inherit  for  them- 
selves admitted  their  power  of  conveying  such  a  right 
to  male  issue.  As  a  preliminary  step  to  the  public 
recognition  of  the  prince,  it  was  necessary  to  name 
a  guardian,  who  should  be  empowered  to  make  the 
requisite  engagements  and  to  act  in  his  behalf.  The 
Justice  of  Aragon,  in  his  official  capacity,  after  due 
examination,  appointed  the.  grandparents,  Ferdinand 
and  Isabella,  to  the  office  of  guardians  during  his 
minority,  which  would  expire  by  law  at  the  age  of 
fourteen.  3« 

On  Saturday,  the  2  2d  of  September,  when  the  queen 
had  sufficiently  recovered  from  a  severe  illness  brought 
on  by  her  late  sufferings,  the  four  arms  of  the  cortes  of 
Aragon  assembled  in  the  house  of  deputation  at  Sara- 
gossa;  and  Ferdinand  and  Isabella  made  oath  asguard- 


34  Blancas,  Commentarii,  pp.  510,  511.  —  Idem,  Coronaclones,  lib. 
3,  cap.  19. — Ger6nimo  Mattel,  Forma  de  celebrar  Cortes  en  Aragon 
(Zaragoza,  1641),  cap.  44. — Alvaro  Gomt^,  De  Rebus  gestis  a  Fran- 
cisco Ximenio  Cisnerio  (Compluti,  1569),  fol.  28. — Lanuza,  Historias, 
lib.  I,  cap.  9. 


366 


THE  ROYAL  FAMILY. 


ians  of  the  heir  apparent,  before  the  Justice,  not  to 
exercise  any  jurisdiction  whatever  in  the  name  of  the 
young  prince  during  his  minority  j  engaging,  more- 
over, so  far  as  lay  in  their  power,  that,  on  his  coming 
of  age,  he  should  swear  to  respect  the  laws  and  liberties 
of  the  realm,  before  entering  on  any  of  the  rights  of 
sovereignty.  The  four  estates  then  took  the  oath  of 
fealty  to  Prince  Miguel,  as  lawful  heir  and  successor  to 
the  crown  of  Aragon ;  with  the  protestation  that  it 
should  not  be  construed  into  a  precedent  for  exacting 
such  an  oath  hereafter  during  the  minority  of  the  heir 
apparent.  With  such  watchful  attention  to  constitu- 
tional forms  of  procedure  did  the  people  of  Aragon 
endeavor  to  secure  their  liberties ;  forms  which  con- 
tinued to  be  observed  in  later  times,  long  after  those 
liberties  had  been  swept  away.  3* 

In  the  month  of  January  of  the  ensuing  year,  the 
young  prince's  succession  was  duly  confirmed  by  the 
cortes  of  Castile,  and  in  the  following  March,  by  that 
of  Portugal.  Thus,  for  once,  the  crowns  of  the  three 
monarchies  of  Castile,  Aragon,  and  Portugal  were  sus- 
pended over  one  head.  The  Portuguese,  retaining  the 
bitterness  of  ancient  rivalry,  looked  with  distrust  at  the 

35  Blancas,  Coronaciones,  ubi  supra. — Idem,  Commentarii,  pp.  510, 
511.  The  reverence  of  the  Aragonese  for  their  institutions  is  shown  in 
their  observance  of  the  most  insignificant  ceremonies.  A  remarkable 
instance  of  this  occurred  in  the  year  1481,  at  Saragossa,  when,  the 
queen  having  been  constituted  lieutenant-general  of  the  kingdom,  and 
duly  qualified  to  hold  a  cortes  in  the  absence  of  the  king  her  husband, 
who  by  the  ancient  laws  of  the  land  was  required  to  preside  over  it  in 
person,  it  was  deemed  necessary  to  obtain  a  formal  act  of  the  legisla- 
ture for  opening  the  door  for  her  admission.  See  Blancas,  Modo  de 
proceder  en  Cortes  de  Aragon  (Zaragoza,  1641),  fol.  82,  83. 


'm'. 


ALLIANCES  AND  DEATHS. 


367 


prospect  of  a  union,  fearing,  with  some  reason,  that  the 
importance  of  the  lesser  state  would  be  wholly  merged 
in  that  of  the  greater.  But  the  untimely  death  of  the 
destined  heir  of  these  honors,  which  took  place  before 
he  had  completed  his  second  year,  removed  the  causes 
of  jealousy,  and  defeated  the  only  chance  which  had 
ever  occurred  of  bringing  under  the  same  rule  three 
independent  nations,  which,  from  their  common  origin, 
their  geographical  position,  and,  above  all,  their  re- 
semblance in  manners,  sentiments,  and  language,  would 
seem  to  have  originally  been  intended  to  form  but  one.'* 

3*  Faria  y  Sousa,  Europa  Portuguesa,  torn.  ii.  pp.  504,  507. — Bernal- 
dez,  Reyes  Cat61icos,  MS.,  cap.  154. — Carbajal,  Anales,  MS.,  aflo 
1499. — Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  torn.  v.  lib.  3,  cap.  33. — San- 
doyal,  Hist,  del  Etnp.  Carlos  V.,  torn.  i.  p.  4. 


CHAPTER   V. 

DEATH   OF   CARDINAL    MENDOZA. — RISE    OF   XIMENES. 

ECCLESIASTICAL  REFORM. 


Death  of  Mendoza.— His  Early  Life,  and  Character. — ^The  Queen  his 
Executor. — Origin  of  Ximenes. — He  enters  the  Franciscan  Order. — 
His  Ascetic  Life. — Confessor  to  the  Queen. — Made  Archbishop  of 
Toledo. — Austerity  of  his  Life. — Reform  of  the  Monastic  Orders. — 
Itisults  offered  to  the  Queen. — She  consents  to  the  Reform. 

In  the  beginning  of  1495,  the  sovereigns  lost  their 
old  and  faithful  minister,  the  grand  cardinal  of  Spain, 
Don  Pedro  Gonzalez  de  Mendoza.  He  was  the  fourth 
son  of  the  celebrated  marquis  of  Santillana,  and  was 
placed  by  his  talents  at  the  head  of  a  family  every 
member  of  which  must  be  allowed  to  have  exhibited  a 
rare  union  of  public  and  private  virtue.  The  cardinal 
had  reached  the  age  of  sixty-six,  when  his  days  were 
terminated,  after  a  long  and  painful  illness,  on  the  nth 
of  January,  at  his  palace  of  Guadalaxara.' 

«  Carbajal,  Anales,  MS.,  alio  1495. — Salazar  de  Mendoza,  Cr6n.  del 
Gran  Cardenal,  lib.  2,  cap.  45,  46. — Zurita,  Anales,  torn.  v.  fol.  61. — 
Pulgar,  Claros  Varones,  tit.  4. — His  disorder  was  an  abscess  on  the 
kidneys,  which  confined  him  to  the  house  nearly  a  year  before  his 
death.  Wlien  this  event  happened,  a  white  cross  of  extraordinary 
magnitude  and  splendor,  shaped  precisely  like  that  on  his  arms,  was 
seen  in  the  heavens  directly  over  his  house,  by  a  crowd  of  spectators, 
for  more  than  two  hours ;  a  full  account  of  which  was  duly  transmitted 
to  Rome  by  the  Spanish  court,  and  has  obtained  easy  credit  with  the 
principal  Spanish  historians. 

(368) 


MONASTIC  REFORMS. 


369 


In  the  unhappy  feuds  between  Henry  the  Fourth  and 
his  younger  brother  Alfonso,  the  cardinal  had  remained 
faithful  to  the  former.  But  on  the  death  of  that  monarch 
he  threw  his  whole  weight,  with  that  of  his  powerful 
family,  into  the  scale  of  Isabella,  whether  influenced  by 
a  conviction  of  her  superior  claims  or  her  capacity  for 
government.  This  was  a  most  important  acquisition 
to  the  royal  cause ;  and  Mendoza's  consummate  talents 
for  business,  recommended  by  the  most  agreeable 
address,  secured  him  the  confidence  of  both  Ferdi- 
nand and  Isabella,  who  had  long  been  disgusted  with 
the  rash  and  arrogant  bearing  of  their  old  minister, 
Carillo. 

On  the  death  of  that  turbulent  prelate,  Mendoza  suc- 
ceeded to  the  archiepiscopal  see  of  Toledo.  His  new 
situation  naturally  led  to  still  more  intimate  relations 
with  the  sovereigns,  who  uniformly  deferred  to  his  ex- 
perience, consulting  him  on  all  important  matters,  not 
merely  of  a  public  but  of  a  private  nature.  In  short, 
he  gained  such  ascendency  in  the  cabinet,  during  a 
long  ministry  of  more  than  twenty  years,  that  he  was 
pleasantly  called  by  the  courtiers  the  "third  king  of 
Spain."" 

»  Alvaro  Gomez  says  of  him,  "  Nam  praeter  clarissimum  turn  natalium, 
tum  fortunae,  turn  dignitatis  splendorem,  quae  in  illo  omamenta  summa 
erant,  incredibilem  animi  sublimitatem  cum  pari  morum  facilitate, 
elegantidque  conjunxerat ;  ut  merito  locum  in  republica  summo  proxi- 
mum  ad  supremum  usque  diem  tenuerit."  (De  Rebus  gestis,  fol.  9.) 
Martyr,  noticing  the  cardinal's  death,  bestows  the  following  brief  but 
comprehensive  panegyric  on  him  :  "  Periit  Gonsalus  Mendotiae,  domus 
splendor  et  lucida  fax  ;  periit  quem  universa  colebat  Hispania,  quern 
exteri  etiam  principes  venerabantur,  quem  ordo  cardineus  collegam 
sibi  esse  gloriabatur."  Opus  Epist.,  epist.  158. 
Vol.  II.— 24  Q* 


! 


370 


RISE   OF  XIMENES. 


The  minister  did  not  abuse  the  confidence  so  gen- 
erously reposed  in  him.  He  called  the  attention  of  his 
royal  mistress  to  objects  most  deserving  it.  His  views 
were  naturally  grand  and  lofty ;  and,  if  he  sometimes 
yielded  to  the  fanatical  impulse  of  the  age,  he  never 
failed  to  support  her  heartily  in  every  generous  enter- 
prise for  the  advancement  of  her  people.  When  raised 
to  the  rank  of  primate  of  Spain,  he  indulged  his  natural 
inclination  for  pomp  and  magnificence.  He  filled  his 
palace  with  pages,  selected  from  the  noblest  families  in 
the  kingdom,  whom  he  carefully  educated.  He  main- 
tained a  numerous  body  of  armed  retainers,  which,  far 
from  being  a  mere  empty  pageant,  formed  a  most  effect- 
ive corps  for  public  service  on  all  requisite  occasions. 
He  dispensed  the  immense  revenues  of  his  bishopric 
with  the  same  munificent  hand  which  has  so  frequently 
distinguished  the  Spanish  prelacy,  encouraging  learned 
men  and  endowing  public  institutions.  The  most  re- 
markable of  these  were  the  college  of  Santa  Cruz  at 
Valladolid,  and  the  hospital  of  the  same  name  for 
foundlings  at  Toledo,  the  erection  of  which,  com- 
pleted at  his  sole  charge,  consumed  more  than  ten 
years  each.' 

The  cardinal,  in  his  younger  days,  was  occasionally 
seduced  by  those  amorous  propensities  in  which  the 
Spanish  clergy  freely  indulged,  contaminated,  perhaps, 
by  the  example  of  their  Mahometan  neighbors.  He 
left  several  children  by  his  amours  with  two  ladies  of 
rank,  from  whom  some  of  the  best  houses  in  the  king- 

3  Salazar  de  Mendoza,  Cr6n.  del  Gran  Cardenal,  pp.  263-273,  381- 
410. 


MONASTIC  REFORMS. 


37X 


doin  are  descended. ^  A  characteristic  anecdote  is  re- 
corded of  him  in  relation  to  this  matter.  An  ecclesiastic, 
who  one  day  delivered  a  discourse  in  his  presence,  took 
occasion  to  advert  to  the  laxity  of  the  age,  in  general 
terms,  indeed,  but  bearing  too  pertinent  an  application 
to  the  cardinal  to  be  mistaken.  The  attendants  of  the 
latter  boiled  with  indignation  at  the  freedom  of  the 
preacher,  whom  they  determined  to  chastise  for  his 
presumption.  They  prudently,  however,  postponed  this 
until  they  should  see  what  effect  the  discourse  had  on 
their  master.  The  cardinal,  far  from  betraying  any 
resentment,  took  no  other  notice  of  the  preacher  than 
to  send  him  a  dish  of  choice  game,  which  had  been 
served  up  at  his  own  table,  where  he  was  entertaining 
a  party  of  friends  that  day,  accompanying  it  at  the 
same  time,  byway  of  sauce,  with  a  substantial  donative 
of  gold  doblas ;  an  act  of  Christian  charity  not  at  all  to 
the  taste  of  his  own  servants.  It  wrought  its  effects  on 
the  worthy  divine, -who  at  once  saw  the  error  of  his 
ways,  and,  the  next  time  he  mounted  the  pulpit,  took 
care  to  frame  his  discourse  in  such  a  manner  as  to  coun- 
teract the  former  unfavorable  impressions,  to  the  entire 
satisfaction,  if  not  edification,  of  his  audience.  "  Now- 
adays," says  the  honest  biographer  who  reports  the 
incident,  himself  a  lineal  descendant  of  the  cardinal, 
**  the  preacher  would  not  have  escaped  so  easily.  And 
with  good  reason ;  for  the  holy  gospel  should  be  dis- 
creetly preached,  *  cum  grano  salis,*  that  is  to  say,  with 


4  "  Gran  varon,  y  muy  experimentado  y  prudente  en  negocios,"  says 
Oviedo  of  the  cardinal,  "  pero  d  vueltasde  las  negociaciones  destavida, 
tuvo  tres  hijos  varones,"  etc.  Then  follows  a  full  notice  of  this  grace- 
less progeny.     Quincuagen;xs,  MS.,  bat.  i,  quinc.  i,  dial.  8. 


37> 


JtlSE   OF  XIAtENES. 


the  decorum  and  deference  due  to  majesty  and  men  of 
high  estate."' 

When  Cardinal  Mendoza's  illness  assumed  an  alarm- 
ing aspect,  the  court  removed  to  the  neighborhood  of 
Guadalaxara,  where  he  was  confined.  The  king  and 
queen,  especially  the  latter,  with  the  affectionate  con- 
cern which  she  manifested  for  more  than  one  of  her 
faithful  subjects,  used  to  visit  him  in  person,  testifying 
her  sympathy  for  his  sufferings,  and  benefiting  by  the 
lights  of  the  sagacious  mind  which  had  so  long  helped 
to  guide  her.  She  still  further  showed  her  regard  for 
her  old  minister  by  condescending  to  accept  the  office 
of  his  executor,  which  she  punctually  discharged,  super- 
intending the  disposition  of  his  effects  according  to  his 
testament,*  and  particularly  the  erection  of  the  stately 
hospital  of  Santa  Cruz  before  mentioned,  not  a  stone 
of  which  was  laid  before  his  death.' 


i 


5  Salazar  de  Mendoza,  Cron.  del  Gran  Cardenal,  lib.  2,  cap.  66.— 
The  doctor  Pedro  Salazar  de  Mendoza's  biography  of  his  illustrious 
relative  is  a  very  fair  specimen  of  the  Spanish  style  of  book-making  in 
ancient  times.  One  event  seems  to  suggest  another  with  about  as 
much  cohesion  as  the  rhymes  of  "  The  House  that  Jack  built."  There 
is  scarcely  a  place  or  personage  of  note,  that. the  grand  cardinal  was 
brought  in  contact  with  in  the  course  of  his  life,  whose  history  is  not 
made  the  theme  of  profuse  dissertation.  Nearly  fifty  chapters  are  taken 
up,  for  example,  with  the  distinguished  men  who  graduated  at  the 
college  of  Santa  Cruz. 

6  "  Non  hoc,"  says  Tacitus  with  truth,  "  prajcipuum  amicorum  munu!> 
est,  prosequi  defunctum  ignavo  questu :  sed  quae  voluerit  meminisse, 
quae  mandaverit  exsequi."    Annales,  lib.  2,  sect.  71. 

7  Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  epist.  143. — Carbajal,  Anales,  MS.,  afio 
1494. — Salazar  de  Mendoza,  Cron.  del  Gran  Cardenal,  lib.  2,  cap.  45. 
— A  foundling-hospital  does  not  seem  to  have  come  amiss  in  Spain, 
where,  according  to  Salazar,  the  wretched  parents  frequently  destroyed 
tlieir  offspring  by  cast  in  ,  them  into  wells  and  pits,  or  exposing  them 


MONASTIC  REFORMS. 


373 


In  one  of  her  interviews  with  the  flying  minister,  the 
queen  requested  his  advice  respecting  the  nomination 
of  his  successor.  The  cardinal,  in  reply,  earnestly 
cautioned  lier  against  raising  any  one  of  the  principal 
nobility  to  this  dignity,  almost  too  exalted  for  any 
subject,  and  which,  when  combined  with  powerful 
family  connections,  would  enable  a  man  of  factious 
disposition  to  defy  the  royal  authority  itself,  as  they 
had  once  had  bitter  experience  in  the  case  of  Arch- 
bishop Carillo.  On  being  pressed  to  name  the  indi- 
vidual whom  he  thought  best  qualified,  in  every  point 
of  view,  for  the  office,  he  is  said  to  have  recommended 
Fray  Francisco  Ximenez  de  Cisneros,  a  friar  of  the 
Franciscan  order,  and  confessor  of  the  queen.  As  this 
extraordinary  personage  exercised  a  more  important 
control  over  the  destinies  of  his  country  than  any  other 
subject,  during  the  remainder  of  the  present  reign,  it 
will  be  necessary  to  put  the  reader  in  possession  of  his 
history.* 

Ximenez  de  Cisneros,  or  Ximenes,  as  he  is  usually 
called,  was  born  at  the  little  town  of  Tordelaguna,  in 


in  desert  places  to  die  of  famine.  "The  more  compassionate"  he  ob- 
serves, "  laid  them  at  the  doors  of  churches,  where  they  were  too  often 
worried  to  death  by  dogs  and  other  animals."  The  grand  cardinal's 
nephew,  who  founded  a  similar  institution,  is  said  to  have  furnished  an 
asylum  in  the  course  of  his  life  to  no  less  than  13,000  of  these  little 
victims!     Ibid.,  cap.  61. 

«  Salazar  de  Mendoza,  Cr6n.  del  Gran  Cardenal,  lib.  2,  cap.  46. — 
Gomez,  De  Rebus  gestis,  fol.  8. — The  dying  cardinal  is  said  to  have 
recommended,  among  other  things,  that  the  queen  should  repair  any 
wrong  done  to  Joanna  Beltraneja,  by  marrying  her  to  the  young 
prince  of  Asturias ;  which  suggestion  was  so  httle  to  Isabella's  taste 
that  she  broke  off  the  conversation,  saying,  "  the  good  man  wandered 
and  talked  nonsense." 


I 


1 


374 


Il/S£   OF  XIMENES. 


the  year  1436,9  of  an  ancient  but  decayed  family."  lie 
was  early  destined  by  his  parents  for  the  church,  and, 
after  studying  grammar  at  Alcala,  was  removed  at  four- 
teen to  the  university  of  Salamanca.  Here  he  went 
through  the  regular  course  of  instruction  then  pursued, 
devoting  himself  assiduously  to  the  civil  and  canon 
law,  and  at  the  end  of  six  years  received  the  degree  of 
bachelor  in  each  of  them,  a  circumstance  at  that  time 
of  rare  occurrence." 

Three  years  after  quitting  the  university,  the  young 
bachelor  removed  by  the  advice  of  his  parents  to  Rome, 
as  affording  a  better  field  for  ecclesiastical  preferment 
than  he  could  find  at  home.  Here  he  seems  to  have 
attracted  some  notice  by  the  diligence  with  which  he 
devoted  himself  to  his  professional  studies  and  employ- 
ments.    But  still  he  was  far  from  reaping  the  golden 

9  It  is  singular  that  Flechier  should  have  blundered  some  twenty 
years  in  the  date  of  Ximenes's  birth,  which  he  makes  1457.  (Hist,  de 
Ximenes,  Uv.  i,  p.  3.)  It  is  not  singular  that  Marsollier  should.  His- 
toire  du  Minist^re  du  Cardinal  Ximenez  (Toulouse,  1694),  liv.  i,  p.  3. 

^^  The  honorable  extraction  of  Ximenes  is  intimated  in  Juan  Ver- 
gara's  verses  at  the  end  of  the  Complutensian  Polyglot : 

"  Nomine  Cisnerius  clari  de  stirpe  parentum, 
£1  meritis  factus  clarior  ipse  buis." 

h  ray  Pedro  de  Quintanilla  y  Mendoza  makes  a  goodly  genealogical 
tree  for  his  hero,  of  which  King  Pelayo,  King  Pepin,  Charlemagne, 
and  other  royal  worthies  are  the  respectable  roots,  (Prooemia  Dedi- 
catoria,  pp.  5-35.)  According  to  Gonzalo  de  Oviedo,  his  father  was  a 
poor  hidalgo,  who,  having  spent  his  little  substance  on  the  education 
of  his  children,  wiis  obliged  to  take  up  the  profession  of  an  advocate. 
Quincuagenas,  MS. 

"  Quintanilla,  Archetypo,  p.  6. — Gomez,  De  Rebus  gestis,  Ximen., 
ful.  2. — Idem,  Miscellanear.,  MS.,  ex  Bibliotheca  Kegia  Matritensi, 
torn.  ii.  fol.  189. 


MONASTIC  REFORMS. 


375 


fruits  presaged  by  his  kindred ;  and  at  the  expiration 
of  six  years  he  was  suddenly  recalled  to  his  native 
country  by  the  death  of  his  father,  who  left  his  affairs 
in  so  embarrassed  a  condition  as  to  require  his  imme- 
diate presence." 

Before  his  return,  Ximenes  obtained  a  papal  bull,  or 
expectative,  preferring  him  to  the  first  benefice  of  a 
specified  value  W'iich  should  become  vacant  in  the  see 
of  Toledo.  Several  years  elapsed  before  such  a  vacancy 
offered  itself  by  the  death  of  the  archpriest  of  Uzeda 
(1473)  J  ^"^  Ximenes  took  possession  of  that  living  by 
virtue  of  the  apostolic  grant. 

This  assumption  of  the  papal  court  to  dispose  of  the 
church  livings  at  its  own  pleasure  had  been  long  re- 
garded by  the  Spaniards  as  a  flagrant  imposition  ;  and 
Carillo,  the  archbishop  of  Toledo,  in  whose  diocese 
the  vacancy  occurred,  was  not  likely  to  submit  to  it 
tamely.  He  had,  moreover,  promised  this  very  place 
to  one  of  his  own  followers.  He  determined,  accord- 
ingly, to  compel  Ximenes  to  surrender  his  pretensions 
in  favor  of  the  latter,  and,  finding  argument  ineffectual, 
resorted  to  force,  confining  him  in  the  fortress  of 
Uzeda,  whence  he  was  subsequently  removed  to  the 
strong  tower  of  Santorcaz,  then  used  as  a  prison  for 
contumacious  ecclesiastics.  But  Carillo  understood 
little  of  the  temper  of  Ximenes,  which  was  too  inflexible 
to  be  broken  by  persecution.  The  archbishop  in  time 
became  convinced  of  this,  and  was  persuaded  to  release 


w  Gomez,  De  Rebus  gestis,  fol.  2. — Idem,  Miscellanear.,  MS.,  ubi 
supra. — Eugenio  de  Robles,  Compendio  de  la  Vida  y  Hazanas  del 
Cardenal  Don  Fray  Francisco  Ximenez  de  Cisneros  (Toledo,  1604), 
cap.  II. 


376 


HJSE   OF  XIMENES. 


\\ 


him,  but  not  till  after  an  imprisonment  of  more  than 
six  years.'' 

Ximenes,  thus  restored  to  freedom,  and  placed  in 
undisturbed  possession  of  his  benefice,  was  desirous 
of  withdrawing  from  the  jurisdiction  of  his  vindictive 
superior,  and  not  long  after  effected  an  exchange  for 
the  chaplainship  of  Siguenza  (1480).  In  this  new 
situation  he  devoted  himself  with  renewed  ardor  to  his 
theological  studies,  occupying  himself  diligently,  more- 
over, with  Hebrew  and  Chaldee,  his  knowledge  of 
which  proved  of  no  little  use  in  the  concoction  of  his 
famous  Polyglot. 

Mendoza  was  at  that  time  bishop  of  Siguenza.  It 
was  impossible  that  a  man  of  his  penetration  should 
come  in  contact  with  a  character  like  that  of  Ximenes 
without  discerning  its  extraordinary  qualities.  It  was 
not  long  before  he  appointed  him  his  vicar,  with  the 
administration  of  his  diocese ;  in  which  situation  he 
displayed  such  capacity  for  business  that  the  count  of 
Cifuentes,  on  falling  into  the  hands  of  the  Moors,  after 
the  unfortunate  affair  of  the  Axarquia,  confided  to  him 
the  sole  management  of  his  vast  estates  during  his 
captivity.'* 


»3  Quintanilla,  Archetype,  pp.  8,  lo.— Goircz,  De  Rebus  gestis,  fol. 
2. — Fldchier,  Hist,  de  Ximenes,  pp.  8-10. — Suma  de  la  Vida  del  R.  S. 
Cardenal  Don  Fr.  Francisco  Ximenez  de  Cisneros,  sacada  de  los 
Memoriales  de  Juan  de  Vallejo,  Paje  de  Cdmara,  h.  de  algunas  Per- 
sonas  que  en  su  Ticnipo  lo  vieron:  para  la  Ilustrisima  Seiiortv  Dofla 
Catalina  de  la  Zerda,  Condesa  de  Corufia,  a  quien  Dios  guarde,  y  de 
su  Gracia,  por  un  Criado  de  su  Casa,  MS. 

'4  Suma  de  la  Vida  do  Cisneros,  MS. — Gomez,  De  Rebus  gestis,  fol. 
3, — Robles,  Vida  de  Ximenez,  cap.  ii. — Oviedo,  Quincuagenas,  MS., 
dial,  de  Ximeni. 


MONASTIC  REFORMS. 


377 


But  these  secular  concerns  grew  more  and  more  dis- 
tasteful to  Ximenes,  whose  naturally  austere  and  con- 
templative disposition  had  been  deepened,  probably, 
by  the  melancholy  incidents  of  his  life,  into  stern 
religious  enthusiasm.  He  deterniined,  therefore,  to 
break  at  once  from  the  shackles  which  bound  him  to 
the  world,  and  seek  an  asylum  in  some  religious  estab- 
lishment, where  he  might  devote  himself  unreservedly 
to  the  service  of  Heaven.  He  selected  for  this  purpose 
the  Observantines  of  the  Franciscan  order,  the  most 
rigid  of  the  monastic  societies.  He  resigned  his  various 
employments  and  benefices,  with  annual  rents  to  the 
amount  of  two  thousand  ducats,  and,  in  defiance  of  the 
arguments  and  entreaties  of  his  friends,  entered  on  his 
noviciate  in  the  convent  of  San  Juan  de  los  Reyes,  at 
Toledo;  a  superb  pile  then  erecting  by  the  Spanish 
sovereigns,  in  pursuance  of  a  vow  made  during  the  war 
of  Granada.'* 

He  distinguished  his  noviciate  by  practising  every 
ingenious  variety  of  mortification  with  which  super- 
stition has  contrived  to  swell  the  inevitable  catalogue 
of  human  sufferings.  He  slept  on  the  ground,  or  on 
the  hard  floor,  with  a  billet  of  wood  for  his  pillow. 
He  wore  hair  cloth  next  his  skin,  and  exercised  him- 


»s  Quintanilla,  Archetypo,  p.  ii. — Gomez,  Miscellanear.,  MS.,  ubi 
supra. — Idem,  De  Rebus  gestis,  fol.  4. — This  edifice,  says  Salazar  de 
Mendoza,  in  respect  to  its  sacristy,  choir,  cloisters,  library,  etc.,  was 
the  most  sumptuous  and  noted  of  its  time.  It  was  originally  destined 
by  the  Catholic  sovereigns  for  their  place  of  sepulture ;  an  honor  after- 
wards reserved  for  Granada,  on  its  recovery  from  the  infidels.  The 
great  chapel  was  garnished  with  the  fetters  taken  from  the  dungeons 
of  Malaga,  in  which  the  Moors  confined  their  Christian  captives. 
Monarquia,  torn.  i.  p.  410. 


378 


RISE   OF  XIMENES. 


self  with  fasts,  vigils,  and  stripes  to  a  degree  scarcely 
surpassed  by  the  fanatical  founder  of  his  order.  At 
the  end  of  the  year,  he  regularly  professed,  adopting 
then  for  the  first  time  the  name  of  Francisco,  in  com- 
pliment to  his  patron  saint,  instead  of  that  of  Gonzalo, 
by  which  he  had  been  baptized. 

No  sooner  had  this  taken  place,  than  his  reputation 
for  sanctity,  which  his  late  course  of  life  had  diffused 
far  and  wide,  attracted  multitudes  of  all  ages  and  con- 
ditions to  his  confessional ;  and  he  soon  found  himself 
absorbed  in  the  same  vortex  of  worldly  passions  and 
interests  from  which  he  had  been  so  anxious  to  escape. 
At  his  solicitation,  therefore,  he  was  permitted  to 
transfer  his  abode  to  the  convent  of  Our  Lady  of 
Castafiar,  so  called  from  a  deep  forest  of  chestnuts  in 
which  it  was  embosomed.  In  the  midst  of  these  dark 
mountain  solitudes,  he  built  with  his  own  hands  a  little 
hermitage  or  cabin,  of  dimensions  barely  sufficient  to 
admit  his  entrance.  Here  he  passed  his  days  and 
nights  in  prayer,  and  in  meditations  on  the  sacred 
volume,  sustaining  life,  like  the  ancient  anchorites,  on 
the  green  herbs  and  running  waters.  In  this  state  of 
self-mortification,  with  a  frame  wasted  by  abstinence, 
and  a  mind  exalted  by  spiritual  contemplation,  it  is 
no  wonder  that  he  should  have  indulged  in  ecstasies 
and  visions,  until  he  fancied  himself  raised  into  com- 
munication with  celestial  intelligences.  It  is  more 
wonderful  that  his  understanding  was  not  permanently 
impaired  by  these  distempered  fancies.  This  period 
of  his  life,  however,  seems  to  have  been  always  re- 
garded by  him  with  peculiar  satisfaction ;  for  long 
after,  as  his  biographer  assures  us,  when  reposing  in 


MONASTIC  REFORMS. 


379 


lordly  palaces,  and  surrounded  by  all  the  appliances 
of  luxury,  he  looked  back  with  fond  regret  on  the 
hours  which  had  glided  so  peacefully  in  the  hermitage 
of  Castaftar.'* 

Fortunately,  his  superiors,  choosing  to  change  his 
place  of  residence  according  to  custom,  transferred 
him  at  the  end  of  three  years  to  the  convent  of  Sal- 
zeda.  Here  he  practised,  indeed,  similar  austerities, 
but  it  was  not  long  before  his  high  reputation  raised 
him  to  the  post  of  guardian  of  the  convent.  This 
situation  necessarily  imposed  on  him  the  management 
of  the  institution ;  and  thus  the  powers  of  his  mind,  so 
long  wasted  in  unprofitable  reverie,  were  again  called 
into  exercise  for  the  benefit  of  others.  An  event  which 
occurred  some  years  later,  in  1492,  opened  to  him  a 
still  wider  sphere  of  action. 

By  the  elevation  of  Talavera  to  the  metropolitan  see 
of  Granada,  the  office  of  queen's  confessor  became 
vacant.  Cardinal  Mendoza,  who  was  consulted  on 
the  choice  of  a  successor,  well  knew  the  importance 
of  selecting  a  man  of  the  highest  integrity  and  talent ; 
since  the  queen's  tenderness  of  conscience  led  her  to 
take  counsel  of  her  confessor  not  merely  in  regard  to 
her  own  spiritual  concerns,  but  all  the  great  measures 
of  her  administration.  He  at  once  fixed  his  eye  on 
Ximenes,  of  whom  he  had  never  lost  sight,  indeed, 
since  his  first  acquaintance  with  him  at  Siguenza.  He 
was  far  from  approving  his  adoption  of  the  monastic 
life,  and  had  been  heard  to  say  that  "parts  so  extraor- 


»6  Flechier,  Hist,  de  Ximenes,  p.  14.— Quintanilla,  Archetypo,  pp. 
13,  14. — Gomez,  De  Rebus  gestis,  fol.  4. — Suma  de  la  Vida  de  Cis- 
neros,  MS.^Ovicdo,  Quincur.jjcnns,  MS. 


i 

I; 

I 


380 


JilSE   OF  XIMENES. 


dinary  would  not  long  be  buried  in  the  shades  of  a 
convent."  He  is  said,  also,  to  have  predicted  that 
Ximenes  would  one  day  succeed  him  in  the  chair  of 
Toledo;  a  prediction  which  its  author  contributed 
more  than  any  other  to  verify.'' 

He  recommended  Ximenes  in  such  emphatic  terms 
to  the  queen  as  raised  a  strong  desire  in  her  to  see  and 
converse  with  him  herself.  An  invitation  was  accord- 
ingly sent  him  from  the  cardinal  to  repair  to  the  court 
at  Valladolid,  without  intimating  the  real  purpose  of 
it.  Ximenes  obeyed  the  summons,  and,  after  a  short 
interview  with  his  early  patron,  was  conducted,  as 
if  without  any  previous  arrangement,  to  the  queen's 
apartment.  On  finding  himself  so  unexpectedly  in 
the  royal  presence,  he  betrayed  none  of  the  agitation  or 
embarrassment  to  have  been  expected  from  the  secluded 
inmate  of  a  cloister,  but  exhibited  a  natural  dignity  of 
manner,  with  such  discretion  and  fervent  piety,  in 
his  replies  to  Isabella's  various  interrogatories,  as  con- 
firmed the  favorable  prepossessions  she  had  derived 
from  the  cardinal. 

Not  many  days  after,  Ximenes  was  invited  to  take 
charge  of  the  queen's  conscience  (1492).  Far  from 
appearing  elated  by  this  mark  of  royal  favor,  and  the 
prospects  of  advancement  which  it  opened,  he  seemed 
to  view  it  with  disquietude,  as  likely  to  interrupt  the 
peaceful  tenor  of  his  religious  duties;  and  he  accepted 
it  only  with  the  understanding  that  he  should  be  allowed 
to  conform  in  every  respect  to  the  obligations  of  his 

»7  Salazar  de  Mendoza,  Cr6n.  del  Gran  Cardenal,  lib.  2,  cap.  63.— 
Gomez,  De  Rebus  gestis,  fol.  4. — Suma  de  la  Vida  de  Cisneros,  MS, 
— Robles,  Vida  de  Ximenez,  cap.  12. 


MONASTIC  REFORMS. 


38« 


as 


order,  and  to  remain  in  his  own  monastery  when  his 
official  functions  did  not  require  attendance  at  court.'* 

Martyr,  in  more  than  one  of  his  letters  dated  at  this 
time,  notices  the  impression  made  on  the  courtiers  by 
the  remarkable  appearance  of  the  new  confessor,  in 
whose  wasted  frame  and  pallid  care-worn  countenance 
they  seemed  to  behold  one  of  the  primitive  anchorites 
from  the  deserts  of  Syria  or  Egypt.''  The  austerities 
and  the  blameless  purity  of  Ximenes's  life  had  given 
him  a  reputation  for  sanctity  throughout  Spain;"  and 
Martyr  indulges  the  regret  that  a  virtue  which  had 
stood  so  many  trials  should  be  exposed  to  the  worst 
of  all,  in  the  seductive  blandishments  of  a  court.  But 
Ximenes's  heart  had  been  steeled  by  too  stern  a  dis- 
cipline to  be  moved  by  the  fascinations  of  pleasure, 
however  it  might  be  by  those  of  ambition. 

Two  years  after  this  event  he  was  elected  provincial 
of  his  order  in  Castile,  which  placed  him  at  the  head 

'8  Flechier,  Hist,  de  Ximenes,  pp.  i8,  19. — Peter  Martyr,  Opus 
Epist.,  epist.  108. — Robles,  Vida  de  Ximenez,  ubi  supra. — Oviedo, 
Quincuagenas,  MS. 

'9  Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  epist.  108. — "  Praeterea,"  says  Martyr, 
in  a  letter  to  Don  Fernando  Alvarez,  one  of  the  royal  secretaries, 
"  nonne  tu  sanctissimum  quendam  virum  a  solitudine  abstrusisque 
silvis,  macie  ob  abstinentiam  confectum,  relicti  Granatensis  loco  fuisse 
suffectum,  scriptitasti ?  In  istius  facie  obducta,  nonne  Hilarionis  te 
imaginem  aut  primi  Pauli  vultum  conspexisse  fateris?"  Opus  Epist., 
epist.  105. 

»  "Todos  hablaban,"  says  Oviedo,  "de  la  sanctimonia  6  vida  de 
este  religioso."  The  same  writer  says  that  he  saw  him  at  Medina  del 
Campo,  in  1494,  in  a  solemn  procession,  on  the  day  of  Corpus  Christi, 
his  body  nuicli  emaciated,  and  walking  barefooted  in  his  coarse  friar's 
dress.  In  tJie  same  procession  was  the  magnificent  cardinal  of  Spain, 
little  dreaming  how  soon  his  proud  honors  were  to  descend  on  the 
head  of  his  more  humble  companion.     Quincuagenas,  MS. 


382 


KISE   OF  XIMENES. 


ii  iv 


of  its  numerous  religious  establishments.  In  his  fre- 
quent journeys  for  their  inspection  he  travelled  on  foot, 
supporting  himself  by  begging  alms,  conformably  to 
the  rules  of  his  order.  On  his  return  he  made  a  very 
unfavorable  report  to  the  queen  of  the  condition  of 
the  various  institutions,  most  of  which  he  represented 
to  have  grievously  relaxed  in  discipline  and  virtue. 
Contemporary  accounts  corroborate  this  unfavorable 
picture,  and  accuse  the  religious  communities  of  both 
sexes  throughout  Spain,  at  this  period,  of  wasting  their 
hours  not  merely  in  unprofitable  sloth,  but  in  luxury 
and  licentiousness.  The  Franciscans,  in  particular, 
had  so  far  swerved  from  the  obligations  of  their  insti- 
tute, which  interdicted  the  possession  of  property  of 
any  description,  that  they  owned  large  estates  in  town 
and  country,  living  in  stately  edifices,  and  in  a  style 
of  prodigal  expense  not  surpassed  by  any  of  the  mo- 
nastic orders.  Those  who  indulged  in  this  latitude 
were  called  conventuals,  while  the  comparatively  small 
number  who  put  the  strictest  construction  on  the  rule 
of  their  founder  were  denominated  observantines,  or 
brethren  of  the  observance.  Ximenes,  it  will  be  re- 
membered, was  one  of  the  latter." 

The  Spanish  sovereigns  had  long  witnessed  with 
deep  regret  the  scandalous  abuses  which  had  crept 
into  these  ancient  institutions,  and  had  employed  com- 


2'  Bernaldcz,  Reyes  Catolicos,  MS.,  cap.  201. — Suma  de  la  Vida  de 
Cisneros,  MS.—  Mosheim,  Ecclesiastical  History,  vol.  iii.  cent.  14,  p.  2. 
— Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  epist.  163. — L.  Marineo,  Cosas  memo- 
rabies,  fol.  165. — Oviedo,  Epilogo  real,  imperial  y  pontifical,  MS.,  apud 
Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de  Hist.,  torn.  vi.  llust.  8. — Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey 
Hernando,  lib.  3,  cap.  15. 


MONASTIC  REFORMS. 


l^l 


missioners  for  investigating  and  reforming  them,  but 
ineffectually.  Isabella  now  gladly  availed  herself  of 
the  assistance  of  her  confessor  in  bringing  them  into 
a  better  state  of  discipline.  In  the  course  of  the  same 
year,  1494,  she  obtained  a  bull  with  full  authority  for 
this  purpose  from  Alexander  the  Sixth,  the  execution 
of  which  she  intrusted  to  Ximenes.  The  work  of  re- 
form required  all  the  energies  of  his  powerful  mind, 
backed  by  the  royal  authority.  For,  in  addition  to 
the  obvious  difficulty  of  persuading  men  to  resign  the 
good  things  of  this  world  for  a  life  of  penance  and 
mortification,  there  were  other  impediments,  arising 
from  the  circumstance  that  the  conventuals  had  been 
countenanced  in  their  lax  interpretation  of  the  rules 
of  their  order  by  many  of  their  own  superiors,  and 
even  the  popes  themselves.  They  were,  besides,  sus- 
tained in  their  opposition  by  many  of  the  great  lords, 
who  were  apprehensive  that  the  rich  chapels  and 
masses  which  they  or  their  ancestors  had  founded  in 
the  various  monasteries  would  be  neglected  by  the 
observan tines,  whose  scrupulous  adherence  to  the  vow 
of  poverty  excluded  them  from  what,  in  church  as  well 
as  state,  is  too  often  found  the  most  cogent  incentive 
to  the  performance  of  duty." 

From  these  various  causes,  the  work  of  reform  went 
on  slowly;  but  the  untiring  exertions  of  Ximenes 
gradually  effected  its  adoption  in  many  establishments; 
and,  where  fair  means  could  not  prevail,  he  sometimes 
resorted  to  force.     The  monks  of  one  of  the  convents 


»  Fidchier,  Hist,  de  Ximenes,  pp.  25,  26. — Quintanilla,  Archetypo, 
pp.  21,  22. — Gomez,  De  Rebus  gestis,  fol,  6,  7. — Robles,  Vida  de 
Ximenoz,  cap.  12. 


il   if 


384 


A'/SE   OF  XIMENES, 


fii 


in  Toledo,  being  ejected  from  their  dwelling  in  conse- 
quence of  their  pertinacious  resistance,  marched  out 
in  solemn  procession,  with  the  crucifix  before  them, 
chanting,  at  the  same  time,  the  psalm  In  exitu  Israel, 
in  token  of  their  persecution.  Isabella  resorted  to 
milder  methods.  She  visited  many  of  the  nunneries 
in  person,  taking  her  needle  or  distaff  with  her,  and 
endeavoring  by  her  conversation  and  example  to  with- 
draw their  inmates  from  the  low  and  frivolous  pleasures 
to  which  they  were  addicted. '^ 

While  the  reformation  was  thus  silently  going  for- 
ward, the  vacancy  in  the  archbishopric  of  Toledo 
already  noticed  occurred  by  the  death  of  the  grand 
cardinal  (1495).  Isabella  deeply  felt  the  responsibility 
of  providing  a  suitable  person  for  this  dignity,  the  most 
considerable  not  merely  in  Spain,  but  probably  in 
Christendom,  after  the  papacy;  one  which,  moreover, 
raised  its  possessor  to  eminent  political  rank,  as  hi^h 
chancellor  of  Castile."*  The  right  of  nomination  to 
benefices  was  vested  in  the  queen  by  the  original  settle- 
ment of  the  crown.  She  had  uniformly  discharged 
this  trust  with  the  most  conscientious  impartiality, 
conferring  the  honors  of  the  church  on  none  but  per- 

=3  Flechier,  Hist,  de  Xinienes,  p.  25. — Quintanilla,  Archctypo,  lib. 
I,  cap.  II. — Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de  Hist.,  torn.  vi.  Ilust.  8. — Rubles, 
Vida  de  Ximenez,  ubi  supra. 

"4  Oviedo,  Quincuagenas,  MS.,  bat.  i,  quinc.  2,  dial.  i. — Ferdinand 
and  Isabella  annexed  the  dignity  of  high  chancellor  in  perpetuity  to 
that  of  archbishop  of  Toledo.  It  seems,  however,  at  least  in  later 
times,  to  have  been  a  mere  honorary  title.  (Mendoza,  Dignidades, 
lib.  2,  cap.  8.)  The  revenues  of  the  archbishopric  at  the  beginning 
of  the  sixteenth  century  amounted  to  80,000  ducats  (Navagiero,  Viag- 
gio,  fol.  9. — L.  Marineo,  Cosas  memorables,  fol.  23),  equivalent  to 
about  702,200  dollars  at  the  present  day. 


AfONAHT/C  KEI'ORMS. 


38s 


sons  of  approved  piety  and  learning.'*  In  the  present 
instance  she  was  strongly  solicited  by  Ferdinand  in 
favor  of  his  natural  son  Alfonso,  archbishop  of  Sara- 
gossa.  But  this  prelate,  although  not  devoid  of  talent, 
had  neither  the  age  nor  experience,  and  still  less  the 
exemplary  morals,  demanded  for  this  important  sta- 
tion ;  and  the  queen  mildly  but  unhesitatingly  resisted 
all  entreaty  and  expostulation  of  her  husband  on  his 
behalf." 

The  post  had  always  been  filled  by  men  of  high 
family.  The  queen,  loath  to  depart  from  this  usage, 
notwithstanding  the  dying  admonition  of  Mendoza, 
turned  her  eyes  on  various  candidates  before  she 
determined  in  favor  of  her  own  confessor,  whose 
character  presented  so  rare  a  combination  of  talent 

«S  "  De  mas  desto,"  says  Lucio  Marineo,  "  tenia  por  costumbre,  que 
quando  avia  de  dar  alguna  dignidad,  o  obispado,  mas  mirava  en  virtiid, 
hoiiestidad,  y  scicncia  de  las  personas,  que  las  riquezas,  y  generosidad, 
aun  que  fuessen  sus  deudos.  Lo  qual  fue  causa  que  muchos  de  los 
que  hablavan  poco,  y  tenian  los  cabellos  mas  cortos  que  las  cejas, 
comen9aron  a  traer  los  ojos  baxos  mirando  la  tierra,  y  andar  con  mas 
gravedad,  y  hazer  mejor  vida,  siniulando  por  vcntura  alguiws  mas  la 
virtud,  que  exercitandola."  (Cosas  mcmorables,  fol.  182.)  "  L'hypo- 
crisie  est  I'hommage  que  le  vice  rend  k  la  vcrlu."  The  maxim  is  now 
somewhat  stale,  like  most  others  of  its  profound  author. 

=6  Quintanilla,  Archetype,  lib.  1,  cap.  16. — Salazar  de  Mendoza, 
Cron.  del  Gran  Cardenal,  lib.  2,  cap.  65. — This  prelate  was  at  this 
time  only  twenty-four  years  of  age.  He  had  been  raised  to  the  see 
of  Saragossa  when  only  six.  This  strange  abuse  of  preferring  infants 
to  the  highest  dignities  of  the  church  seems  to  have  prevailed  in  Castile 
as  well  as  Aragon ;  for  the  tombs  of  five  archdeacons  might  be  seen 
in  the  church  of  Madre  de  Dios  at  Toledo,  in  Salazar's  time,  whose 
united  ages  amounted  to  only  thirty  yeai*s.  See  Cr6n.  del  Gran  Car- 
denal, ubi  supra. 

Vol.  11.-25  R 


386 


KISE    OF  XIMENES. 


and  virtue  as  amply  compensated  any  dtficicncy  of 
birth. 

As  soon  as  tlie  papal  bull  reached  Castile,  confirm- 
ing the  royal  nomination,  Isabella  summoned  Ximenes 
to  her  presence,  and,  delivering  to  him  the  parcel, 
requested  him  to  open  it  before  her.  The  confessor, 
who  had  no  suspicion  of  their  real  purport,  took  the 
letters  and  devoutly  pressed  them  to  his  lips ;  when, 
his  eye  falling  on  the  superscription,  "To  our  venera- 
ble brother  Francisco  Ximenez  de  Cisneros,  archbishop 
elect  of  Toledo,"  he  changed  color,  and  involuntarily 
dropped  the  packet  from  his  hands,  exclaiming,  "There 
is  some  mistake  in  this :  it  cannot  be  intended  for 
me  ;"  and  abruptly  quitted  the  apartment. 

The  queen,  far  from  taking  umbrage  at  this  uncere- 
monious proceeding,  waited  awhile,  until  the  first  emo- 
tions of  surprise  should  have  subsided.  Finding  that 
he  did  not  return,  however,  she  despatched  two  of  the 
grandees,  who  she  thought  would  have  the  most  influ- 
ence with  him,  to  seek  him  out  and  persuade  him  to 
accept  the  office.  The  nobles  instantly  repaired  to 
his  convent  in  Madrid,  in  which  city  the  queen  then 
kept  her  court.  They  found,  however,  that  he  had 
already  left  the  place.  Having  ascertained  his  route, 
they  mounted  their  horses,  and,  following  as  fast  as 
possible,  succeeded  in  overtaking  him  at  three  leagues* 
distance  from  the  city,  as  he  was  travelling  on  foot  at 
a  rapid  rate,  though  in  the  noontide  heat,  on  his  way 
to  the  Franciscan  monastery  at  Ocana. 

After  a  brief  expostulation  with  Ximenes  on  his 
abrupt  departure,  they  prevailed  on  him  to  retrace  his 
steps  to  Madrid ;  but,  upon  his  arrival  there,  neither 


MONASTIC  REFORMS. 


387 


the  arguments  nor  entreaties  of  his  friends,  backed  as 
they  were  by  the  a\  >  wed  wishes  of  his  sovereign,  could 
overcome  his  scruples,  or  induce  him  to  accept  an 
office  of  which  he  professed  himself  unworthy.  "  He 
had  hoped,"  he  said,  "to  pass  the  remainder  of  his 
days  in  the  quiet  practice  of  his  monastic  duties;  and 
it  was  too  late  now  to  call  him  into  public  life,  and 
impose  a  charge  of  such  heavy  respohsihility  on  him, 
for  which  he  had  neither  capacity  nor  inclination." 
In  this  resolution  he  pertinaciously  persisted  for  more 
than  six  months,  until  a  second  bull  was  obtained  from 
the  pope,  commanding  him  no  longer  to  decline  an 
appointment  which  the  church  had  seen  fit  to  sanction. 
This  left  no  further  room  for  opposition,  and  Ximenes 
acquiesced,  though  with  evident  reluctance,  in  his 
advancement  to  the  first  dignity  in  the  kingdom.'' 

There  seems  to  be  no  good  ground  for  charging 
Ximenes  with  hypocrisy  in  this  singular  display  of 
humility.  The  nolo  episcopari,  indeed,  has  passed  into 
a  proverb ;  but  his  refusal  was  too  long  and  sturdily 
maintained  to  be  reconciled  with  affectation  or  insin- 
cerity. He  was,  moreover,  at  this  time  in  the  sixtieth 
year  of  his  age,  when  ambition,  though  not  extin- 
guished, is  usually  chilled  in  the  human  heart.  His 
habits  had  been  long  accommodated  to  the  ascetic 
duties  of  the  cloister,  and  his  thoughts  turned  from  the 
business  of  this  world  to  that  beyond  the  grave.  How- 
ever gratifying  the  distinguished  honor  conferred  on 

V  Garibay,  Compendio,  torn.  ii.  lib.  19,  cap.  4. — Maiiana,  Hist,  de 
Espana,  torn.  ii.  lib.  26,  cap.  7. — Suma  de  la  Vida  de  Cisneros,  MS. — • 
Quintanilla,  Archetypo,  lib.  i,  cap.  16. — Gome-':,  Le  Rcl)us  gestis,  fal. 
il. — Carbajal,  Analcs,  MS.,  afto  1495. — Roblc:.,  Vida  de  Xiinenez, 
cap.  13. — Ovlcdo,  Quincuagenai,  MS. 


' 


388 


mSE    or  XIMENES. 


him  might  be  to  his  personal  feelings,  he  might  natu- 
rally hesitate  to  exchange  the  calm,  sequestered  way  of 
life,  to  which  he  had  voluntarily  devoted  himself,  for 
the  turmoil  and  vexations  of  the  world. 

But,  although  Ximenes  showed  no  craving  for  power, 
it  must  be  confessed  he  was  by  no  means  diffident  in 
the  use  of  it.  One  of  the  very  first  acts  of  his  admin- 
istration is  too  characteristic  to  be  omitted.  The  gov- 
ernment of  Cazorla,  the  most  considerable  place  in  the 
gift  of  the  archbishop  of  Toledo,  had  been  intrusted 
by  the  grand  cardinal  to  his  younger  brother,  Don 
Pedro  Hurtado  de  Mendoza.  The  friends  of  this 
nobleman  applied  to  Ximenes  to  confirm  the  appoint- 
ment, reminding  him  at  the  same  time  of  his  own 
obligations  to  the  cardinal,  and  enforcing  their  peti- 
tion by  the  recommendation  which  they  had  obtained 
from  the  queen.  This  was  not  the  way  to  approach 
Ximenes,  who  was  jealous  of  any  improper  influence 
over  his  own  judgment,  and,  above  all,  of  the  too  easy 
abuse  of  the  royal  favor.  He  was  determined,  in  the 
outset,  effectually  to  discourage  all  such  applications  j 
and  he  declared  that  "  the  sovereigns  might  send  him 
back  to  the  cloister  again,  but  that  no  personal  con- 
siderations should  ever  operate  with  him  in  distributing 
the  honors  of  the  church."  The  applicants,  nettled 
at  this  response,  returned  to  the  queen,  complaining  in 
the  bitterest  terms  of  the  arrogance  and  ingratitude 
of  the  new  primate.  Isabella,  however,  evinced  no 
symptoms  of  disapprobation,  not  altogether  displeased, 
perhaps,  with  the  honest  independence  of  her  minister; 
at  any  rate,  she  took  no  fiirther  notice  of  the  affair.* 

=8  Gomez,  De  Rebos  gestis,  fol.  ii. 


MONASTIC  REFORMS. 


389 


Some  time  after,  the  archbishop  encountered  Men- 
doza  in  one  of  the  avenues  of  the  palace,  and,  as  the 
latter  was  turning  off  to  avoid  the  meeting,  he  saluted 
him  with  the  title  of  adelantado  of  Cazorla.  Mendoza 
stared  with  astonishment  at  the  prelate,  who  repeated 
the  salutation,  assuring  him  *'  that,  now  he  was  at  full 
liberty  to  consult  his  own  judgment,  without  the  sus- 
picion of  any  sinister  influence,  he  was  happy  to  restore 
him  to  a  station  for  which  he  had  shown  himself  well 
qualified."  It  is  scarcely  necessary  to  say  that  Ximenes 
was  not  importuned  after  this  with  solicitations  for 
office.  Indeed,  any  personal  application  he  affected  to 
regard  as  of  itself  sufficient  ground  for  a  denial,  since 
it  indicated  **  the  want  either  of  merit  or  of  humility 
in  the  applicant."'' 

After  his  elevation  to  the  primacy,  he  retained  the 
same  simple  and  austere  manners  as  before,  dispensing 
his  large  revenues  in  public  and  private  charities,  but 
regulating  his  domestic  expenditure  with  the  severest 
economy,^"  until  he  was  admonished  by  the  Holy  See 
to  adopt  a  state  more  consonant  with  the  dignity  of 
his  office,  if  he  would  not  disparage  it  in  popular  esti- 
mation. In  obedience  to  this,  he  so  far  changed  his 
habits  as  to  display  the  usual  magnificence  of  his  pre- 
decessors in  all  that  met  the  public  eye, — his  general 
style  of  living,  equipage,  and  the  number  and  pomp 
of  his  retainers;  but  he  relaxed  nothing  of  his  per- 

=9  Gomez,  De  Rebus  gestis,  fol.  11. — Robles,  Vidade  Ximenez,  cap. 

13.  14- 

30  "  He  kept  five  or  six  friars  of  his  order,"  says  Gonzalo  de  Oviedo, 

"in  his  palace  with  him,  and  as  many  asses  in  his  stables;  but  the 
latter  all  grew  sleek  and  fat,  for  the  archbishop  would  not  ride  himself, 
nor  allow  his  brethren  to  ride  either."    Quincuagenas,  MS. 


390 


mSE   OF  XIMENES. 


I 


sonal  mortifications.  He  maintained  the  same  abste- 
mious diet  amidst  all  the  luxuries  of  his  table.  Under 
his  robes  of  silk  or  costly  furs  he  wore  the  coarse  frock 
of  St.  Francis,  which  he  used  to  mend  with  his  own 
hands.  He  used  no  linen  about  his  person  or  bed ; 
and  he  slept  on  a  miserable  pallet  like  that  used  by 
the  monks  of  his  fraternity,  and  so  contrived  as  to  bj 
concealed  from  observation  under  the  luxurious  couch 
in  which  he  affected  to  repose. 3' 

As  soon  as  Ximenes  entered  on  the  duties  of  his 
office,  he  bent  all  the  energies  of  his  mind  to  the  con- 
summation of  the  schemes  of  reform  which  his  royal 
mistress,  as  well  as  himself,  had  so  much  at  heart.  His 
attention  was  particularly  directed  to  the  clergy  of  his 
diocese,  who  had  widely  departed  from  the  rule  of  St. 
Augustine,  by  which  they  were  bound.  His  attempts 
at  reform,  however,  excited  such  a  lively  dissatisfaction 
in  this  reverend  body  that  they  determined  to  send 
one  of  their  own  number  to  Rome,  to  prefer  their 
complaints  against  the  archbishop  at  the  papal  court.^" 

3'  Suma  de  la  Vida  de  Cisneros,  MS. — Quintanilla,  Archetype,  lib. 
2,  cap.  8,  9. — Gomez,  De  Rebus  gestis,  fol.  12. — Oviedo,  Quincua- 
genas,  MS. — Rubles,  Vida  de  Ximenez,  cap.  13. — He  commonly  slept 
in  his  Franciscan  habit.  Of  course  his  toilet  took  no  long  time.  On 
one  occasion,  as  he  was  travelling,  and  up  as  usual  long  before  dawn, 
he  urged  his  muleteer  to  dress  himself  quickly;  at  which  the  latter 
ii  reverently  exclaimed,  "  Cuorpo  de  Dios  I  does  your  holiness  think  I 
liave  nothing  more  to  do  than  to  shake  myself  hke  a  wet  spaniel  and 
tighten  my  cord  a  little?"     Quintanilla,  Archetypo,  ubi  supra. 

3»  Gomez,  De  Rebus  gestis,  fol.  i6. — The  Venetian  minister  Nava- 
giero,  noticing  the  condition  of  the  canons  of  Toledo  some  few  years 
later,  celebrates  them  as  "  lording  it  above  all  others  in  their  own  city, 
being  especial  favorites  with  the  ladies,  dwelling  in  stately  mansions, 
passing,  in  short,  the  most  agreeable  lives  in  the  world,  without  any 
one  to  trouble  them."    Viaggio,  fol.  9. 


MONASTIC  REFORMS. 


391 


The  person  selected  for  this  delicate  mission  was  a 
shrewd  and  intelligent  canon  by  the  name  of  Albornoz. 
It  could  not  be  conducted  so  privately  as  to  escape  the 
knowledge  of  Ximenes.  He  was  no  sooner  acquainted 
with  it  than  he  despatched  an  officer  to  the  coast,  with 
orders  to  arrest  the  emissary.  In  case  he  had  already 
embarked,  the  officer  was  authorized  to  fit  out  a  fast- 
sailing  vessel,  so  as  to  reach  Italy,  if  possible,  before 
him.  He  was  at  the  same  time  fortified  with  despatches 
from  the  sovereigns  to  the  Spanish  minister,  Garcilasso 
de  la  Vega,  to  be  delivered  immediately  on  his  arrival. 

The  affair  turned  out  as  had  been  foreseen.  On 
arriving  at  the  port,  the  officer  found  the  bird  had 
flown.  He  followed,  however,  without  delay,  and  had 
the  good  fortune  to  reach  Ostia  several  days  before 
him.  He  forwarded  his  instructions  at  once  to  the 
Spanish  minister,  who  in  pursuance  of  them  caused 
Albornoz  to  be  arrested  the  moment  he  set  foot  on 
shore,  and  sent  him  back  as  a  prisoner  of  state  to 
Spain  ;  where  a  close  confinement  for  two-and-twenty 
months  admonished  the  worthy  canon  of  the  inexpe- 
diency of  thwarting  the  plans  of  Ximenes." 

His  attempts  at  innovation  among  the  regular  clergy 
of  his  own  order  were  encountered  with  more  serious 
opposition.  The  reform  fell  most  heavily  on  the 
Franciscans,  who  were  interdicted  by  their  rules  from 
holding  property,  whether  as  a  community  or  as  indi- 
viduals; while  the  members  of  other  fraternities  found 
some  compensation  for  the  surrender  of  their  private 
fortunes,  in  the  consequent  augmentation  of  those  of 
their  fraternity.     There  was  no  one  of  the  religious 

33  Gomez,  De  Rebus  gestis,  fol.  17. 


!  1 


392 


RISE   OF  XIMENES. 


orders,  therefore,  in  which  the  archbishop  experienced 
such  a  dogged  resistance  to  his  plans  as  in  his  own. 
More  than  a  thousand  friars,  according  to  some  ac- 
counts, quitted  the  country  and  passed  over  to  Bar- 
bary,  preferring  rather  to  live  with  the  infidel  than 
conform  to  the  strict  letter  of  the  founder's  rules.^* 

The  difficulties  of  the  reform  were  perhaps  aug- 
mented by  the  mode  in  which  it  was  conducted. 
Isabella,  indeed,  used  all  gentleness  and  persuasion  j^s 
but  Ximenes  carried  measures  with  a  high  and  inex- 
orable hand.  He  was  naturally  of  an  austere  and 
arbitrary  temper,  and  the  severe  training  which  he 
had  undergone  made  him  less  charitable  for  the  lapses 
of  others,  especially  of  those  who,  like  himself,  had 
voluntarily  incurred  the  obligations  of  monastic  rule. 
He  was  conscious  of  the  rectitude  of  his  intentions ; 
and,  as  he  identified  his  own  interests  with  those  of 
the  church,  he  regarded  all  opposition  to  himself  as  an 
offence  against  religion,  warranting  the  most  peremptory 
exertion  of  power. 

The  clamor  raised  against  his  proceedings  became  at 
length  so  alarming  that  the  general  of  the  Franciscans, 

34  Quintanilla,  Archetypo,  pp.  22,  23. — Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de  Hist., 
torn.  vi.  p.  201. — Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  lib.  3,  cap.  15. — 
One  account  represents  the  migration  as  being  to  Italy  and  other 
Christian  countries,  where  the  conventual  order  was  protected  ;  which 
would  seem  the  more  probable,  tliougli  not  the  better  authenticated, 
statement  of  the  two. 

35  "  Trataba  las  monjas,"  says  Riol,  "  con  un  agrado  y  amor  tan 
carifioso,  que  las  robaba  los  corazones,  y  hecha  duciia  de  ellas,  las 
persuadia  con  suividad  y  eficacia  ;i  que  votasen  clausura.  Y  es  cosa 
admirable,  que  raro  fue  el  convento  donde  entr6  esta  celebre  heroina. 
donde  no  lograse  en  el  propio  dia  el  efecto  de  su  santo  deseo."  Informe, 
apud  Semanario  erudito,  torn.  iii.  p.  nj. 


MONASTIC  REFORMS. 


393 


who  resided  at  Rome,  determined  to  anticipate  the 
regular  period  of  his  visit  to  Castile  for  inspecting 
the  affairs  of  the  order  (1496).  As  he  was  himself  a 
conventual,  his  prejudices  were  of  course  all  enlisted 
against  the  measures  of  reform ;  and  he  came  over  fully 
resolved  to  compel  Ximenes  to  abandon  it  altogether, 
or  to  undermine,  if  possible,  his  credit  and  influence 
at  court.  But  this  functionary  had  neither  the  talent 
nor  temper  requisite  for  so  arduous  an  undertaking. 

He  had  not  been  long  in  Castile  before  he  was  con- 
vinced that  all  his  own  power,  as  head  of  the  order, 
would  be  incompetent  to  protect  it  against  the  bold 
innovations  of  his  provincial,  while  supported  by  royal 
authority.  He  demanded,  therefore,  an  audience  of 
the  queen,  in  which  he  declared  his  sentiments  with 
very  little  reserve.  He  expressed  his  astonishment  that 
she  should  have  selected  an  individual  for  the  highest 
dignity  in  the  church,  who  was  destitute  of  nearly 
every  qualification,  even  that  of  birth;  whose  sanctity 
was  a  mere  cloak  to  cover  his  ambition  ;  whose  morose 
and  melancholy  temper  made  him  an  enemy  not  only 
of  the  elegances  but  the  common  courtesies  of  lifej 
and  whose  rude  manners  were  not  compensated  by  any 
tincture  of  liberal  learning.  He  deplored  the  magni- 
tude of  the  evil  which  his  intemperate  measures  had 
brought  on  the  church,  but  which  it  was,  perhaps,  not 
yet  too  late  to  rectify ;  and  he  concluded  by  admon- 
ishing her  that,  if  she  valued  her  own  fame  or  the 
interests  of  her  soul,  she  would  compel  this  man  of 
yesterday  to  abdicate  the  office  for  which  he  had 
proved  himself  so  incompetent,  and  return  to  his 
original  obscurity ! 


1 


f 


I  1^! 


394 


f!ISE    OF  XIMENES. 


The  queen,  who  listened  to  this  violent  harangue 
with  an  indignation  that  prompted  her  more  than  once 
to  order  the  speaker  from  her  presence,  put  a  re- 
straint on  her  feelings,  and  patiently  waited  to  the  end. 
When  he  had  finished,  she  calmly  asked  him,  "If  he 
was  in  his  senses,  and  knew  whom  he  was  thus  address- 
ing?" "  Yes,"  replied  the  enraged  friar,  **  I  am  in  my 
senses,  and  know  very  well  whom  I  am  speaking  to ; 
— the  queen  of  Castile,  a  mere  handful  of  dust,  like 
myself!"  With  these  words,  he  rushed  out  of  the 
apartment,  shutting  the  door  after  him  with  furious 
violence.  3* 

Such  impotent  bursts  of  passion  could,  of  course, 
have  no  power  to  turn  the  queen  from  her  purpose. 
The  general,  however,  on  his  return  to  Italy,  had 
sufficient  address  to  obtain  authority  from  His  Holi- 
ness to  send  a  commission  of  conventuals  to  Castile, 
who  should  be  associated  with  Ximenes  in  the  man- 
agement of  the  reform.  These  individuals  soon  found 
themselves  mere  ciphers ;  and,  highly  offended  at  the 
little  account  which  the  archbishop  made  of  their 
authority,  they  preferred  such  complaints  of  his  pro- 
ceedings to  the  pontifical  court  that  Alexander  the 
Sixth  was  induced,  with  the  advice  of  the  college  of 
cardinals,  to  issue  a  brief,  November  9th,  1496,  per- 
emptorily inhibiting  the  sovereigns  from  proceeding 
further  in  the  affair  until  it  had  been  regularly  sub- 
mitted for  examination  to  the  head  of  the  church.^ 

36  Flechier,  Hist,  de  Ximenes,  pp.  56,  58. — Gomez,  De  Rebus  gestis, 
fol.  14. — Zurita,  Hist,  del  Rey  Hernando,  lib.  3,  cap.  15. — Rob'.es, 
Vida  de  Ximenez,  cap.  13. 

37  Gomez,  De  Rebus  gestis,  fol.  23. — Quintanilla,  Archetypo,  lib.  i, 
cap.  II. 


MONASTIC  REFORMS. 


395 


Isabella,  on  receiving  this  unwelcome  mandate,  in- 
sl  ntly  sent  it  to  Ximenes.  The  spirit  of  the  latter, 
hf  wever,  rose  in  propo  .lOn  to  the  obstacles  it  had  to 
e'  counter.  He  sought  only  to  rally  the  queen's  cour- 
age, beseeching  her  not  to  faint  in  the  good  work,  now 
that  it  was  so  far  advanced,  and  assuring  her  that  it 
wa,s  already  attended  with  such  beneficent  fruits  as 
could  not  fiiil  to  secure  the  protection  of  Heaven. 
Isabella,  every  act  of  whose  administration  may  be 
said  to  have  had  reference,  more  or  less  remote,  to  the 
interests  of  religion,  was  as  little  likely  as  himself  to 
falter  in  a  matter  which  proposed  these  interests  as  its 
direct  and  only  object.  She  assured  her  minister  that 
she  would  support  him  in  all  that  was  practicable;  and 
she  lost  no  time  in  presenting  the  affair,  through  her 
agents,  in  such  a  light  to  the  court  of  Rome  as  might 
work  a  more  favorable  disposition  in  it.  In  this  she 
succeeded,  though  not  till  after  multiplied  delays  and 
embarrassments ;  and  such  ample  powers  were  con- 
ceded to  Ximenes  (1497),  in  conjunction  with  the 
apostolic  nuncio,  as  enabled  him  to  consummate  his 
grand  scheme  of  reform,  in  defiance  of  all  the  efforts 
of  his  enemies.'' 

The  reformation  thus  introduced  extended  to  the 
religious  institutions  of  every  order  equally  with  his 
own.  It  was  most  searching  in  its  operation,  reaching 
eventually  to  the  moral  conduct  of  the  subjects  of  it, 
no  less  than  to  mere  points  of  monastic  discipline. 
As  regards  the  latter,  it  may  be  thought  of  doubtful 

38  Quintanill.i,  Archetypo,  lib.  i,  cap.  11-14. — Riol  discusses  the 
various  monastic  reforms  effected  by  Ximenes,  in  his  Memorial  to 
Philip  v.,  apud  Semanario  erudito,  torn.  iii.  pp.  102-110. 


I 


396 


JilSE    OF  XIMENES. 


benefit  to  have  enforced  the  rigid  interpretation  of  a 
rule  founded  on  the  melancholy  principle  that  the 
amount  of  happiness  in  the  next  world  is  to  be  regu- 
lated by  that  of  self-inflicted  suffering  in  this.  But 
it  should  be  remembered  that,  however  objectionable 
such  a  rule  may  be  in  itself,  yet  where  it  is  voluntarily 
assumed  as  an  imperative  moral  obligation  it  cannot 
be  disregarded  without  throwing  down  the  barrier  to 
unbounded  license;  and  that  the  reassertion  of  it, 
under  these  circumstances,  must  be  a  necessary  pre- 
liminary to  any  effectual  reform  of  morals. 

The  beneficial  changes  wrought  in  this  latter  par- 
ticular, which  Isabella  had  far  more  at  heart  than  any 
exterior  forms  of  discipline,  are  the  theme  of  unquali- 
fied panegyric  with  her  contemporaries.*"  The  Spanish 
clergy,  as  I  have  before  had  occasion  to  remark,  were 
early  noted  for  their  dissolute  way  of  life,  which,  to  a 
certain  extent,  seemed  to  be  countenanced  by  the  law 
itself.*"  This  laxity  of  morals  had  been  carried  to  a  most 
lamentable  extent  under  the  last  reign,  when  all  orders 
of  ecclesiastics,  whether  regular  or  secular,  infected 

39  L.  Marinco,  Cosas  memorables,  fol.  165. — Bemaldez,  Reyes  Ca- 
tdlicos,  MS.,  cap,  201. — et  al. 

40  The  practice  of  concubinage  by  the  clergy  was  fully  recognized, 
and  the  ancient  fueros  of  Castile  permitted  their  issue  to  inherit  the 
estates  of  such  parents  as  died  intestate.  (See  Marina,  Ensayo  his- 
t6rico-critico  sobre  la  antigua  Legislacion  de  Castilla  (Madrid,  1808), 
p.  184.)  The  effrontery  of  these  legalized  strumpets,  barraganas,  as 
they  were  called,  was  at  length  so  intolerable  as  to  call  for  repeated 
laws,  regulating  their  apparel,  and  prescribing  a  badge  for  distinguish- 
ing them  from  honest  women.  (Sempere,  Hist,  del  Luxo,  torn.  i.  pp. 
165-169.) — Spain  is  probably  the  only  country  in  Christendom  where 
concubinage  was  ever  sanctioned  by  law ;  a  circumstance  doubtless 
imputable  in  some  measure  to  the  influence  of  the  Mahometans. 


MONASTIC  REFORMS. 


397 


probably  by  the  corrupt  example  of  the  court,  are 
represented  (we  may  hope  it  is  an  exaggeration)  as 
wallowing  in  all  the  excesses  of  sloth  and  sensuality. 
So  deplorable  a  pollution  of  the  very  sanctuaries  of 
religion  could  not  fail  to  occasion  sincere  regret  to  a 
pure  and  virtuous  mind  like  Isabella's.  The  stain  had 
sunk  too  deep,  however,  to  be  readily  purged  away. 
Her  personal  example,  indeed,  and  the  scrupulous  in- 
tegrity with  which  she  reserved  all  ecclesiastical  pre- 
ferment for  persons  of  unblemished  piety,  contributed 
greatly  to  bring  about  an  amelioration  in  the  morals 
of  the  secular  clergy.  But  the  secluded  inmates  of  the 
cloister  were  less  open  to  these  influences;  and  the 
work  of  reform  could  only  be  accomplished  there  by 
bringing  them  back  to  a  reverence  for  their  own  insti- 
tutions, and  by  the  slow  operation  of  public  opinion. 

Notwithstanding  the  queen's  most  earnest  wishes,  it 
may  be  doubted  whether  this  would  have  ever  been 
achieved  without  the  co-operation  of  a  man  like  Xi- 
menes,  whose  character  combined  in  itself  all  the  essen- 
tial elements  of  a  reformer.  Happily,  Isabella  was 
permitted  to  see  before  her  death,  if  not  the  com- 
pletion, at  least  the  commencement,  of  a  decided 
amendment  in  the  morals  of  the  religious  orders  \  an 
amendment  which,  far  from  being  transitory  in  its 
character,  calls  forth  the  niost  emphatic  eulogium  from 
a  Castilian  writer  far  in  the  following  century;  who, 
while  he  laments  their  ancient  laxity,  boldly  challenges 
comparison  for  the  religious  communities  of  his  own 
country  with  those  of  any  other,  in  temperance,  chastity, 
and  exemplary  purity  of  life  and  conversation.^' 

4»  Gomez,  De  Rebus  gestis,  fol.  23. 


id 


\ 

f-f, 

-if 
If 


398 


/ilSE   OF  X/MENES. 


The  authority  on  whom  the  life  of  Cardinal  Ximenes  mainly  rests  is 
Alvaro  Gomez  de  Castro.  He  was  born  in  the  village  of  St.  Euialia, 
near  Toledo,  in  1515,  and  received  his  education  at  AlcalA,  where  he 
obtained  great  repute  for  his  critical  acquaintance  with  the  ancient 
classics.  He  was  afterwards  made  professor  of  the  humanities  in  the 
university ;  a  situation  which  he  filled  with  credit,  but  subsequently 
exchanged  for  the  rhetorical  chair  in  a  school  recently  founded  at 
Toledo.  While  thus  occupied,  he  was  chosen  by  the  university  of 
Alcald  to  pay  the  most  distinguished  honor  which  could  be  rendered 
to  the  memory  of  its  illustrious  founder,  by  a  faithful  record  of  his 
extraordinary  life.  The  most  authentic  sources  of  information  were 
thrown  open  to  him.  He  obtained  an  intimate  acquaintance  with  th« 
private  life  of  the  cardinal  from  three  of  his  principal  d(  mestics,  who 
furnished  abundance  of  reminiscences  from  personal  observation,  while 
the  archives  of  the  university  supplied  a  mass  of  documents  relating 
to  the  public  services  of  its  patron.  From  these  and  similar  materials, 
Gomez  prepared  his  biography,  after  many  years  of  patient  labor. 
The  work  fully  answered  public  expectation ;  and  its  merits  are  such 
as  to  lead  the  learned  Nic.  Antonio  to  express  a  doubt  whether  any 
thing  more  excellent  or  perfect  in  its  way  could  be  achieved :  "  quo 
opere  in  eo  genere  an  prtestantius  quidquam  aut  perfectius,  esse  possit, 
non  immerito  saepe  dubitavi."  (Bibliotheca  Nova,  tom.  i.  p.  59.)  The 
encomium  may  be  thought  somewhat  excessive;  but  it  cannot  be 
denied  that  the  narr  itive  is  written  in  an  easy  and  natural  manner, 
with  fidelity  and  accuracy,  with  commendable  liberality  of  opinion, 
though  with  a  judgment  sometimes  warped  into  an  undue  estimate 
of  the  qualities  of  his  hero.  It  is  distinguished,  moreover,  by  such 
beauty  and  correctness  of  Latinity  as  have  made  it  a  text-book  in 
many  of  the  schools  and  colleges  of  the  Peninsula.  The  first  edition, 
being  that  used  in  the  present  work,  was  published  at  Alcald,  in  1569. 
It  has  since  been  reprinted  twice  in  Germany,  and  perhaps  elsewhere. 
Gomez  was  busily  occupied  with  other  literary  lucubrations  during 
the  remainder  of  his  life,  and  published  several  works  in  Latin  prose 
and  verse,  both  of  which  he  wrote  with  ease  and  elegance.  He  died 
of  a  catarrh,  in  1580,  in  the  sixty-sixth  year  of  his  age,  leaving  behind 
him  a  reputation  for  disinterestedness  and  virtue  which  is  sufficiently 
commemorated  in  two  lines  of  his  epitaph : 


"  Nemini  unqiiam  sciens  nociii, 
Piodesse  quam  pluribus  curavi.' 


MONASTIC  REl'ORMS. 


399 


The  work  of  Gomez  has  furnished  the  basis  for  all  those  biographies 
of  Ximeues  wliich  li.ive  since  appeared  in  Spain.  Tlie  most  important 
of  tliese,  probajjly,  is  Quintanilla's;  wliich,  with  hale  merit  of  selec- 
tion or  arrangement,  presents  a  copious  ni;iss  of  details,  drawn  from 
every  quarter  whence  his  patient  industry  could  glean  them,  its 
author  w>is  a  fr mciscan,  and  employed  in  procuring  the  beatification 
cf  Cardinal  Ximenes  by  the  court  of  Rome ;  a  circumstance  which 
probably  disposed  him  to  easier  faith  in  the  marvellous  of  his  story 
than  most  of  his  readers  will  be  ready  to  give.  Tlie  work  was  nub- 
hshed  at  Palermo  in  1653. 

In  addition  to  these  authorities,  I  have  availed  myself  of  a  curious 
old  manuscript,  presented  to  me  by  Mr.  O.  Kich,  entitled  "Suma  de 
la  Vida  del  R.  S.  Cardenal  Don  Fr.  Francisco  Ximenez  de  Cisneros." 
It  was  written  within  half  a  century  after  the  cardinal's  death,  by  "  un 
criado  de  la  casa  de  Coruiia."  The  original,  in  "  very  ancient  letter," 
was  extant  in  the  archives  of  that  noble  house  in  Quintanilla's  time, 
and  is  often  cited  by  him.  (Archetypo,  apend.,  p.  77.)  Its  author 
evidently  had  accev>  to  those  contemporary  notices  some  of  which 
furnished  the  basis  uf  Castro's  narrative,  from  which,  indeed,  it  ex- 
hibits no  material  discrepancy. 

The  extraordinary  character  of  Ximenes  has  naturally  attracted  the 
attention  of  foreign  writers,  and  especially  the  French,  who  have 
produced  repeated  biographies  of  him.  The  most  eminent  of  these 
is  by  Flechier,  the  eloquent  bishop  of  Nismes.  It  is  written  with  the 
simple  elegance  and  perspicuity  which  characterize  his  other  compo- 
sitions, and  in  the  general  tone  of  its  sentiments,  on  all  matters  both 
of  church  and  state,  is  quite  as  orthodox  as  the  most  bigoted  admirer 
of  the  cardinal  could  desire.  Another  life,  by  Marsollier,  has  obtained 
a  very  undeserved  repute.  The  author,  not  content  with  the  extraor- 
dinary qualities  really  appertaining  to  his  hero,  makes  him  out  a  sort 
of  universal  genius,  rivalling  Moli^re's  Dr.  Pancrace  himself.  One 
may  form  some  idea  of  the  historian's  accuracy  from  the  fact  that  he 
refers  the  commencement  and  conduct  of  the  war  of  Granada  chiefly 
to  the  counsels  of  Ximenes,  who,  as  we  have  seen,  was  not  even  in- 
troduced at  court  till  after  the  close  of  the  war.  MarsoUier  reckoned 
largely  on  the  ignorance  and  gullibility  of  his  readers.  The  event 
proved  he  was  not  mistaken. 


tr. 
I 


CHAPTER   VI. 

XIMENES   IN   GRANADA.  —  PERSECUTION,    INSURRECTION, 
AND   CONVERSION   OF   THE   MOORS. 


1499-1500. 

Tranquil  State  of  Granada. — Mild  Policy  of  Talavera. — Clergy  dis- 
satisfied with  it. — Violent  Measures  of  Ximeney. — His  Fanaticism. 
— Its  mischievous  Effects. — Insurrection  in  Granada. — Tranquillity 
restored. — Baptism  of  the  Inhabitants. 


MoKAL  energy,  or  constancy  of  purpose,  seems  to  be 
less  properly  an  independent  power  of  the  mind  than 
a  mode  of  action  by  which  its  various  powers  operate 
with  effect.  But,  however  this  may  be,  it  enters  more 
largely,  perhaps,  than  mere  talent,  as  commonly  under- 
stood, into  the  formation  of  what  is  called  character, 
and  is  often  confounded  by  the  vulgar  with  talent  of 
the  highest  order.  In  the  ordinary  concerns  of  life, 
indeed,  it  is  more  serviceable  than  brilliant  parts ; 
while  in  the  more  important  these  latter  are  of  little 
weight  without  it,  evaporating  only  in  brief  and  barren 
flashes,  which  may  dazzle  the  eye  by  their  splendor, 
but  pass  away  and  are  forgotten. 

The  importance  of  moral  energy  is  felt  not  only, 

where  it  would  be  expected,  in  the  concerns  of  active 

life,  but  in  those  more  exclusively  of  an  intellectual 

character, — in  deliberative   assemblies,    for  example, 

(400) 


C  rr^ 


/n 


PERSECUTIONS  IN  GRANADA. 


401 


where  talent,  as  usually  understood,  might  be  supposed 
to  assert  an  absolute  supremacy,  but  where  it  is  inva- 
riably made  to  bend  to  the  controlling  influence  of  this 
principle.  No  man  destitute  of  it  can  be  the  leader 
of  a  party;  while  there  are  few  leaders,  probably,  who 
do  not  number  in  their  ranks  minds  from  which  they 
would  be  compelled  to  shrink  in  a  contest  for  purely 
intellectual  pre-eminence. 

This  energy  of  purpose  presents  itself  in  a  yet  more 
imposing  form  when  stimulated  by  some  intense  pas- 
sion, as  ambition,  or  the  nobler  principle  of  patriotism 
or  religior  •  when  the  soul,  spurning  vulgar  considera- 
tions ot  Mi  "Hi ,  is  ready  to  do  and  to  dare  all  for 
conscience  ^  '•  ;  when,  insensible  alike  to  all  that 
this  world  can  give  or  take  away,  it  loosens  itself  from 
the  gross  ties  which  bind  it  to  earth,  and,  however 
humble  its  powers  in  every  other  point  of  view,  attains 
a  grandeur  and  elevation  which  genius  alone,  however 
gifted,  can  never  reach. 

But  it  is  when  associated  with  exalted  genius,  and 
under  the  action  of  the  potent  principles  above  men- 
tioned, that  this  moral  energy  conveys  an  image  of 
power  which  approaches  nearer  than  any  thing  else  on 
earth  to  that  of  a  divine  intelligence.  It  is,  indeed, 
such  agents  that  Providence  selects  for  the  accomplish- 
ment of  those  great  revolutions  by  which  the  world  is 
shaken  to  its  foundations,  new  and  more  beautiful  sys- 
tems created,  and  the  human  mind  carried  forward  at 
a  single  stride,  in  the  career  of  improvement,  further 
than  it  had  advanced  for  centuries.  It  must,  indeed, 
be  confessed  that  this  powerful  agency  is  sometimes 
for  evil,  as  well  as  for  good.  It  is  this  same  impulse 
Vol.  II.— 26 


f 


402 


XIMENES. 


which  spurs  guilty  Ambition  along  his  bloody  track, 
and  which  arms  the  hand  of  the  patriot  sternly  to 
resist  him ;  which  glows  with  holy  fervor  in  the  bosom 
of  the  martyr,  and  which  lights  up  the  fires  of  perse- 
cution, by  which  he  is  to  win  his  crown  of  glory.  The 
direction  of  the  impulse,  differing  in  the  same  indi- 
vidual under  diflFerent  circumstances,  can  alone  deter- 
mine whether  he  shall  be  the  scourge  or  the  benefactor 
of  his  species. 

These  reflections  have  been  suggested  by  the  char- 
acter of  the  extraordinary  person  brought  forward  in 
the  preceding  chapter,  Ximenes  de  Cisneros,  and  the 
new  and  less  advantageous  aspect  in  which  he  must 
now  appear  to  the  reader.  Inflexible  constancy  of 
purpose  formed,  perhaps,  the  most  prominent  trait 
of  his  remarkable  character.  What  direction  it  might 
have  received  under  other  circumstances  it  is  impos- 
sible to  say.  It  would  be  no  great  stretch  of  fancy  to 
imagine  that  the  unyielding  spirit,  which  in  its  early 
days  could  voluntarily  endure  years  of  imprisonment 
rather  than  submit  to  an  act  of  ecclesiastical  oppression, 
might  under  similar  influences  have  been  aroused,  like 
Luther's,  to  shake  down  the  ancient  pillars  of  Cathol- 
icism, instead  of  lending  all  its  strength  to  uphold 
them.  The  latter  position,  however,  would  seem  better 
assimilated  to  the  constitution  of  his  mind,  whose 
sombre  enthusiasm  naturally  prepared  him  for  the  vague 
and  mysterious  in  the  Romish  faith,  as  his  inflexible 
temper  did  for  its  bold  and  arrogant  dogmas.  At  any 
rate,  it  was  to  this  cause  he  devoted  the  whole  strength 
of  his  talents  and  commanding  energies. 

We  have  seen  in  the  preceding  chapter  with  what 


PERSECUTIONS  IN  XiRANADA. 


403 


promptness  he  entered  on  the  reform  of  religious  dis- 
cipline as  soon  as  he  came  into  office,  and  with  what 
pertinacity  he  pursued  it  in  contempt  of  all  personal 
interest  and  popularity.  We  are  now  to  see  him  de- 
voting himself  with  similar  zeal  to  the  extirpation  of 
heresy;  with  contempt  not  merely  of  personal  conse- 
quences, but  also  of  the  most  obvious  principles  of 
good  faith  and  national  honor. 

Nearly  eight  years  had  elapsed  since  the  conquest 
of  Granada,  and  the  subjugated  kingdom  continued 
to  repose  in  peaceful  security  under  the  shadow  of  the 
treaty  which  guaranteed  the  unmolested  enjoyment  of 
its  ancient  laws  and  religion.  This  unbroken  contin- 
uance of  public  tranquillity,  especially  difficult  to  be 
maintained  among  the  jarring  elements  of  the  capital, 
whose  motley  population  of  Moors,  renegades,  and 
Christians  suggested  perpetual  points  of  collision,  must 
be  chiefly  referred  to  the  discreet  and  temperate  con- 
duct of  the  two  individuals  whom  Isabella  had  charged 
with  the  civil  and  ecclesiastical  government.  These 
were  Mendoza,  count  of  Tendilla,  and  Talavera,  arch- 
bishop of  Granada. 

The  former,  the  brightest  ornament  of  his  illustrious 
house,  has  been  before  made  known  to  the  reader  by 
his  various  important  services,  both  military  and  diplo- 
matic. Immediately  after  the  conquest  of  Granada  he 
was  made  alcayde  and  captain-general  of  the  king- 
dom; a  post  for  which  he  was  every  way  qualified  by 
his  prudence,  firmness,  enlightened  views,  and  long 
experience.^ 

«  "  Hombre,"  his  son,  the  historian,  says  of  him,  "  de  prudencia  en 
negocios  giaves,  dc  animo  firme,  asegurado  con  luenga  experiencia  de 


404 


XIMENES. 


The  latter  personage,  of  more  humble  extraction," 
was  Fray  Fernando  de  Talavera,  a  Hieronymite  monk, 
who,  having  been  twenty  years  prior  of  the  monas- 
tery of  Santa  Maria  del  Prado,  near  Valladolid,  was 
made  confessor  of  Queen  Isabella,  and  afterwards 
of  the  king.  This  situation  necessarily  gave  him 
considerable  influence  in  all  public  measures.  If  the 
keeping  of  the  royal  conscience  could  be  safely  in- 
trusted to  any  one,  it  might  certainly  be  to  this  esti- 
mable prelate,  equally  distinguished  for  his  learning, 
amiable  manners,  and  unblemished  piety;  and,  if 
his  character  was  somewhat  tainted  with  bigotry,  it 
was  in  so  mild  a  form,  so  far  tempered  by  the  natural 
benevolence  of  his  disposition,  as  to  make  a  favorable 
contrast  to  the  dominant  spirit  of  the  time.' 

After  the  conquest,  he  exchanged  the  bishopric  of 
Avila  for  the  archiepiscopal  see  of  Granada.      Not- 

rencuentros  i  battalias  ganadas."  (Guerra  de  Granada,  lib.  i,  p.  9.) 
Oviedo  dwells  with  sufficient  amplification  on  the  personal  history  and 
merits  of  this  distinguished  individual,  in  his  garrulous  reminiscences. 
Quincuagenas,  MS.,  bat.  i,  quinc.  i,  dial.  28. 

»  Oviedo,  at  least,  can  find  no  better  pedigree  for  him  than  that  of 
Adam :  "  Quanto  d  su  linage  ^1  i\xh  del  linage  de  todos  los  humanos 
6  de  aquel  barro  y  subcesion  de  Adan."  (Quincuagenas,  MS.,  dial. 
de  Talavera.)  It  is  a  very  hard  case,  when  a  Castilian  can  make  out 
no  better  genealogy  for  his  hero. 

3  Pedraza,  Antigiiedad  de  Granada,  lib.  3,  cap.  10. — Marmol,  Re- 
belion  de  los  Moriscos,  lib.  i,  cap.  21. — Talavera's  correspondence 
with  the  queen,  published  in  various  works,  but  most  correctly,  proba- 
bly, in  the  sixth  volume  of  the  Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de  Hist.  (Ilust.  13), 
is  not  calculated  to  raise  his  reputation.  His  letters  are  little  else 
than  homilies  on  the  love  of  company,  dancing,  and  the  like  heinous 
offences.  The  whole  savors  more  of  the  sharp  twang  of  Puritanism 
than  of  the  Roman  Catholic  school.  But  bigotry  is  neutral  ground^ 
on  which  the  most  opposite  sects  may  meet. 


^^ 


PERSECUTIONS  IN  GRANADA. 


405 


3 


withstanding  the  wishes  of  the  sovereigns,  he  refused 
to  accept  any  increase  of  emolument  in  this  new  and 
more  exalted  station.  His  revenues,  indeed,  which 
amounted  to  two  millions  of  maravedis  annually,  were 
somewhat  less  than  he  before  enjoyed.*  The  greater 
part  of  this  sum  he  liberally  expended  on  public  in 
provements  and  works  of  charity;  objects  which,  to 
their  credit  be  it  spoken,  have  rarely  failed  to  engage 
a  large  share  of  the  attention  and  resources  of  the 
higher  Spanish  clergy.' 

The  subject  which  pressed  most  seriously  on  the 
mind  of  the  good  archbishop  was  the  conversion  of 
the  Moors,  whose  spiritual  blindness  he  regarded  with 
feelings  of  tenderness  and  charity  very  different  from 
those  entertained  by  most  of  his  reverend  brethren. 
He  proposed  to  accomplish  this  by  the  most  rational 
method  possible.  Though  late  in  life,  he  set  about 
learning  Arabic,  that  he  might  communicate  with  the 
Moors  in  their  own  language,  and  commanded  his 
clergy  to  do  the  same.*  He  caused  an  Arabic  vocabu- 
lary, grammar,  and  catechism  to  be  compiled,  and  a 

4  Pedraza,  Antigiiedad  de  Granada,  lib.  3,  cap.  10. — Marmol,  lib.  i, 
cap.  21. — Equivalent  to  56,000  dollars  of  the  present  day ;  a  sum  which 
Pedraza  makes  do  quite  as  hard  duty,  according  to  its  magnitude,  as 
the  500  pounds  of  Pope's  Man  of  Ross. 

5  Pedraza,  ubi  supra. — Oviedo,  Quincuagenas,  MS.,  dial,  de  Tila- 
vera. — The  worthy  archbishop's  benefactions  on  some  occasions  were 
of  rather  an  extraordinary  character.  "  Pidiendole  limosna,"  says 
Pedraza,  "  una  muger  que  no  tenia  camisa,  se  entro  en  una  casa,  y  se 
desnud6  la  suya  y  se  la  dio ;  diziendo  con  san  Pedro,  No  tengo  ore 
ni  plata  que  darte,  doyte  lo  que  tengo."  Antigiiedad  de  Granada, 
lib.  3,  cap.  10. 

*  Marmol,  Rebelion  de  los  Moriscos,  lib.  i,  cap.  21. — Pedraza,  Anti- 
giiedad de  Granada,  ubi  supra. 


4o6 


XIMENES. 


version  in  the  same  tongue  to  be  made  of  the  liturgy, 
comprehending  the  selections  from  the  Gosoels,  and 
proposed  to  extend  this  at  some  future  time  to  the 
whole  body  of  the  Scriptures.'  Thus  unsealing  the 
sacred  oracles  which  had  been  hitherto  shut  out  from 
their  sight,  he  opened  to  them  the  only  true  sources 
of  Christian  knowledge,  and,  by  endeavoring  to  effect 
their  conversion  through  the  medium  of  their  under- 
standings, instead  of  seducing  their  imaginations  with 
a  vain  show  of  ostentatious  ceremonies,  proposed  the 
only  method  by  which  conversion  could  be  sincere  and 
permanent. 

These  wise  and  benevolent  measures  of  the  good 
prelate,  recommended  as  they  were  by  the  most  ex- 
emplary purity  of  life,  acquired  him  great  authority 
among  the  Moors,  who,  estimating  the  value  of  the 
doctrine  by  its  fruits,  were  well  inclined  to  listen  to  it, 
and  numbers  were  daily  added  to  the  church.^ 

The  progress  of  proselytism,  however,  was  neces- 
sarily slow  and  painful  among  a  people  reared  from  the 
cradle  not  merely  in  antipathy  to,  but  abhorrence  of, 
Christianity;  who  were  severed  from  the  Christian  com- 

7  Fldchier,  Hist,  de  Ximenes,  p.  17, — Quintanilla,  Archetype,  lib.  2, 
cap.  S. — Gomez,  De  Rebus  gestis,  fol.  32. — Oviedo,  Quincuagenas, 
MS. — These  tracts  were  pubhshed  at  Granada,  in  1505,  in  Roman 
characters,  being  the  first  books  ever  printed  in  the  Arabic  language, 
according  to  Dr.  M'Crie  (Reformation  in  Spain,  p.  70),  who  cites 
Schnurrer,  Bibl.  Arabica,  pp.  16-18. 

8  Bleda,  Coronica,  lib.  5,  cap.  23. — Pedraza,  Antigiiedad  de  Gra- 
nada, lib.  3,  cap.  10. — Marmol,  Rebelion  de  los  Moriscos,  lib.  i,  cap. 
ai. — Gomez,  De  Rebus  gestis,  fol.  29. — "  Hacia  lo  que  predicaba,  ^ 
predico  lo  que  hizo,"  says  Oviedo  of  the  archbishop,  briefly,  "  i  asi 
fu^  mucho  provcchoso  e  util  en  aquella  ciudad  para  la  conversion  de 
los  Moros."     Quincuagenas,  MS. 


PERSECUTIONS  IN  GRANADA. 


407 


munity  by  strong  dissimilarity  of  language,  habits,  and 
institutions,  and  now  indissolubly  knit  together  by  a 
common  sense  of  national  -  "sfortune.  Many  of  the 
more  zealous  clergy  and  re  tjious  persons,  conceiving, 
indeed,  this  barrier  altogether  insurmountable,  were 
desirous  of  seeing  it  swept  away  at  once  by  the  strong 
arm  of  power.  They  represented  to  the  sovereigns 
that  it  seemed  like  insensibility  to  the  goodness  of 
Providence,  which  had  delivered  the  infidels  into  their 
hands,  to  allow  them  any  longer  to  usurp  the  fair  in- 
heritance of  the  Christians,  and  that  the  whole  of  the 
stiff-necked  race  of  Mahomet  might  justly  be  required 
to  submit  without  exception  to  instant  baptism,  or  to 
sell  their  estates  and  remove  to  Africa.  This,  they 
maintained,  could  be  scarcely  regarded  as  an  infringe- 
ment of  the  treaty,  since  the  Moors  would  be  so  great 
gainers  on  the  score  of  their  eternal  salvation;  to 
say  nothing  of  the  indispensableness  of  such  a  meas- 
ure to  the  permanent  tranquillity  and  security  of  the 
kingdom  !' 

But  these  considerations,  "just  and  holy  as  they 
were,"  to  borrow  the  words  of  a  devout  Spaniard," 
failed  to  convince  the  sovereigns,  wno  resolved  to 
abide  by  their  royal  word,  and  to  trust  to  the  concili- 
atory measures  now  in  progress,  and  a  longer  and  more 
intimate  intercourse  with  the  Christians,  as  the  only 
legitimate  means  for  accomplishing  their  object.  Ac- 
cordingly, we  find  the  various  public  ordinances,  as 
low  down  as  1499,  recognizing  this  principle,  by  the 
respect  which  they  show  for  the  most  trivial  usages 

9  Marmol,  Rebclion  de  los  Moriscos,  lib.  i,  cap.  23. 
»  Ibid.,  ubi  supra. 


4o8 


XIMENES. 


of  the  Moors,"  and  by  their  sanctioning  no  other 
stimulant  to  conversion  than  the  amelioration  of  their 
condition.'" 

Among  those  in  favor  of  more  active  measures  was 
Ximenes,  archbishop  of  Toledo.  Having  followed  the 
court  to  Granada  in  the  autumn  of  1499,  he  took  the 
occasion  to  communicate  his  views  to  Talavera,  the 
archbishop,  requesting  leave  at  the  same  time  to  par- 
ticipate with  him  in  his  labor  of  love ;  to  which  the 
latter,  willing  to  strengthen  himself  by  so  efficient  an 
ally,  modestly  as.sented.  Ferdinand  and  Isabella  soon 
after  removed  to  Seville  (Nov.  1499),  but,  before  their 
departure,  enjoined  on  the  prelates  to  observe  the 
temperate  policy  hitherto  pursued,  and  to  beware  of 
giving  any  occasion  for  discontent  to  the  Moors.'' 

»'  In  the  pragmhtlca  dated  Granada,  October  30th,  1499,  prohibit- 
ing silk  apparel  of  any  description,  an  exception  was  made  in  favor 
of  the  Moors,  whose  robes  were  usually  of  that  material,  among  the 
wealthier  classes.     Pragmdticas  del  Reyno,  fol.  120. 

"  Another  law,  October  31st,  1409,  provided  against  the  disinherit- 
ance of  Moorish  children  who  had  embraced  Christianity,  and  secured, 
moreover,  to  the  female  converts  a  portion  of  the  property  which  had 
fallen  to  the  state  on  the  conquest  of  Granada.  ( Pragmdticas  del 
Reyno,  fol.  5.)  Llorente  has  reported  this  pragmatic  with  some  inac- 
curacy.    Hist,  de  rinquisition,  tom.  i.  p.  334. 

»3  Uleda,  ConSnica,  lib.  5,  cap.  23. — Gomez,  De  Rebus  gestis,  fol.  29. 
— Quintanilla,  Archetype,  lib.  2,  p.  54. — Suma  de  la  Vida  de  Cisneros, 
MS. — Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  according  to  Ferreras,  took  counsel  of 
sundry  learned  theologians  and  jurists,  whether  they  could  lawfully 
compel  the  Mahometans  to  become  Christians,  notwithstanding  the 
treaty,  which  guaranteed  to  them  the  exercise  of  their  religion.  After 
repeated  conferences  of  this  erudite  body,  "  il  fut  d^cid^,"  says  the 
historian,  "  qu'on  soUiciteroit  la  conversion  des  Mahometans  de  la 
Ville  at  du  Royaume  de  Grenade,  en  ordonnant  k  ceux  qui  ne  vou- 
droient  pas  embrasser  la  religion  Chretienne,  de  vendre  leurs  biens  et 
de  sortir  du  royaume."     (Hist.  d'Espagne,  torn.  viii.  p.  194.)    Such 


PERSECUTIONS  IN  GRANADA. 


409 


No  sooner  had  the  sovereigns  left  the  city,  than 
Ximenes  invited  some  of  the  leading  alfaquis^  or 
Mussulman  doctors,  to  a  conference,  in  which  he 
expounded,  with  all  the  eloquence  at  his  command, 
the  true  foundations  of  the  Christian  faith,  and  the 
errors  of  their  own ;  and,  that  his  teaching  might  be 
the  more  palatable,  enforced  it  by  liberal  presents, 
consisting  mostly  of  rich  and  costly  articles  of  dress, 
of  which  the  Moors  were  at  all  times  exceedingly  fond. 
This  policy  he  pursued  for  some  time,  till  the  effect 
became  visible.  Whether  the  preaching  or  presents 
of  the  archbishop  had  most  weight,  does  not  appear.'* 
It  is  probable,  however,  that  the  Moorish  doctors  found 
conversion  a  much  more  pleasant  and  profitable  busi- 
ness than  they  had  anticipated ;  for  they  one  after 
another  declared  their  conviction  of  their  errors,  and 
their  willingness  to  receive  baptism.  The  example  of 
these  learned  persons  was  soon  followed  by  great  num- 
bers of  their  illiterate  disciples,  insomuch  that  no  less 
than  four  thousand  are  said  to  have  presented  them- 
selves in  one  day  for  baptism ;  and  Ximenes,  unable 
to  administer  the  rite  to  each  individually,  was  obliged 
to  adopt  the  expedient  familiar  to  the  Christian  mis- 
sionaries, of  christening  them  en  masse  by  aspersion ; 
scattering  the  consecrated  drops  from  a  mop,  or  hyssop, 
as  it  was  called,  which  he  twirled  over  the  heads  of  the 
multitude.** 


was  the  idea  of  solicitation  entertained  by  these  reverend  casuists !  The 
story,  however,  wants  a  better  voucher  than  Ferreras. 

u  The  honest  Robles  appears  to  be  of  the  latter  opinion.  "  Alfin," 
says  he,  with  naivete,  "  con  halagos,  dadivas,  y  caricias,  los  truxo  a 
conocimiento  del  verdadero  Dios."    Vida  de  Ximenez,  p.  100. 

*S  Robles,  Vidn  de  Kinienez,  cap.  14. — Marmol,  Rebelion  de  loS 


4X0 


XIMENES, 


So  far  all  went  on  prosperously  ;  and  the  eloquence 
and  largesses  of  the  archbishop,  which  latter  he  lav- 
ished  so  freely  as  to  encumber  his  revenues  for  several 
years  to  come,  brought  crowds  of  proselytes  to  the 
Christian  fold.'*  There  were  some,  indeed,  among  the 
Mahometans,  who  regarded  these  proceedings  as  repug- 
nant, if  not  to  the  letter,  at  least  to  the  spirit  of  the 
original  treaty  of  capitulation  ;  which  seemed  intended 
to  provide  not  only  against  the  employment  of  force, 
but  of  any  undue  incentive  to  conversion.''  Several 
of  the  more  sturdy,  including  some  of  the  principal 

Moriscos,  lib.  i,  cap,  34. — Gomez,  De  Rebus  gestis,  fol.  29. — Suma  d« 
la  Vida  de  Cisneros,  MS. — Some  ecclesiastical  writers  find  no  trace  of 
christening  by  aspersion  earlier  than  the  fourteenth  century.  ( Fleury, 
Histoire  eccl^siastique,  liv.  98.)  But  Father  Torquemada,  in  discussing 
the  validity  of  this  mode  of  baptism,  finds,  or  imagines  he  finds,  warrant 
for  it  as  far  back  as  the  age  of  the  Apostles,  "  Lo  ha  avido,"  he  says 
of  the iau^lzando  con  hhopo,  "  y  huvo  en  laprimitiva  Iglesia.en  tiempo  de 
los  Ap6slolos  de  Christo,  y  en  otros  despues.  Esto  dice  Tertuliano 
averse  usado,  y  en  su  tiempo  se  debia  de  usar  tambien,  nombrando 
el  bautismo  con  el  nombre  de  aspersion  de  agua.  Y  lo  mismo  lo  dice 
San  Cypriano  en  la  Epistola  76,  Ad  Magnum,  y  dice  ser  Verdadero 
Bautismo," — Monarquia  Indiana  (Madrid,  1723),  torn.  iii.  lib.  16,  cap.  i. 

•*  Robles,  Vida  de  Ximenez,  cap,  14. — Quintanilla,  Archetypo,  fol. 
55. — The  sound  of  bells,  so  unusual  to  Mahometan  ears,  pealing  day 
and  night  from  the  newly-consecrated  mosques,  gained  Ximenes  the 
appellation  of  alfaqui  campanero  from  the  Granadines,  Suma  de  la 
Vida  de  Cisneros,  MS, 

•7  Marmol,  Rebelion  de  los  Moriscos,  lib.  i,  cip,  25,— Take  for 
example  the  following  provisions  in  the  treaty :  "  Que  si  algun  Moro 
tuviere  alguna  renegada  por  muger,  no  serA  apremiada  d  ser  Christiana 
contra  su  voluntad,  sino  que  serA  interrogada,  en  presencia  de  Christia- 
nos  y  de  Mores,  y  se  siguird  su  voluntad ;  y  lo  mesmo  se  entenderd 
con  los  niftos  y  ninas  nacidos  de  Christiana  y  Moro,  Que  ningun 
Moro  ni  Mora  serdn  apremiados  d  ser  Christianos  contra  su  voluntad ; 
y  que  si  alguna  doncella,  6  casada,  6  viuda,  por  razon  de  algunol 
kmores  se  quisiere  tomar  Christiana,  tampoco  serd  recebida,  hasta  seir 


PERSECUTIONS  IN  GRANADA. 


411 


citizens,  exerted  their  eflbrts  to  stay  the  tide  of  defec- 
tion, which  threatened  soon  to  swallow  up  the  whole 
population  of  the  city.  But  Ximenes,  whose  zeal  had 
mounted  up  to  fever  heat  in  the  excitement  of  success, 
was  not  to  be  cooled  by  any  opposition,  however  formi- 
dable ;  and,  if  he  had  hitherto  respected  the  letter  of 
the  treaty,  he  now  showed  himself  prepared  to  tramphi 
on  letter  and  spirit  indifferently,  when  they  crossed  hi.- 
designs. 

Among  those  most  active  in  the  opposition  was  a 
noble  Moor  named  Zegri,  well  skilled  in  the  learning 
of  his  countrymen,  with  whom  he  had  great  considera- 
tion. Ximenes,  having  exhausted  all  his  usual  artillery 
of  arguments  and  presents  on  this  obdurate  infidel,  had 
him  taken  into  custody  by  one  of  his  officers  named 
Leon,  "a  lion,"  says  a  punning  historian,  "by  nature 
as  well  as  by  name,"  "  and  commanded  the  latter  to 
take  such  measures  with  his  prisoner  as  would  clear  the 
film  from  his  eyes.  This  faithful  functionary  executed 
his  orders  so  effectually  that,  after  a  few  days  of  fast- 
ing, fetters,  and  imprisonment,  he  was  able  to  present 
his  charge  to  his  employer,  penitent  to  all  outward 
appearance,  and  with  an  humble  mien  strongly  con- 
trasting with  his  former  proud  and  lofty  bearing.  Arun- 
the  most  respectful  obeisance  to  the  archbishop,  Zegri 
informed  him  that  "on  the  preceding  night  he  had 
had  a  revelation  from  Allah,  who  had  condesc^iided  to 
show  him  the  error  of  his  ways,  and  coninanded  him 
to  receive  instant  baptism ;"  at  the  same  time,  pointing 

interrogada."    The  whole  treaty  is  given  in  externa  by  Marmol,  and 
by  no  other  author  that  I  have  seen. 
*B  Gomez,  De  Rebus  gestis,  lib.  2,  fol.  39. 


f^^ 


412 


XIMENES. 


to  his  gaoler,  he  "jocularly"  remarked,  "Your  rever- 
ence has  only  to  turn  this  Hon  of  yours  loose  among 
the  people,  and,  my  word  for  it,  there  will  not  be 
a  Mussulman  left  many  days  within  the  walls  of 
Granada." '»  "Thus,"  exclaims  the  devout  Ferreras, 
"did  Providence  avail  itself  of  the  darkness  of  the 
dungeon  to  pour  on  the  benighted  minds  of  the  infidel 
the  light  of  the  true  faith  !"  ~ 

The  work  of  proselytism  now  went  on  apace;  for 
terror  was  added  to  the  other  stimulants.  The.zealous 
propagandist,  in  the  mean  while,  flushed  with  success, 
resolved  not  only  to  exterminate  infidelity,  but  the 
very  characters  in  which  its  teachings  were  recorded. 
He  accordingly  caused  all  the  Arabic  manuscripts 
which  he  could  procure  to  be  heaped  together  in  a 
common  pile  in  one  of  the  great  squares  of  the  city. 
The  largest  part  were  copies  of  the  Koran,  or  works  in 
some  way  or  other  connected  with  theology;  with  many 
others,  however,  on  various  scientific  subjects.  They 
were  beautifully  executed,  for  the  most  part,  as  to  their 
chirography,  and  sumptuously  bound  and  decorated; 
for  in  all  relating  to  the  mechanical  finishing  of  books 
the  Spanish  Arabs  excelled  every  people  in  Fiirope. 
But  neither  splendor  of  outward  garniture,  nor  intrinsic 
merit  of  composition,  could  atone  for  the  taint  of 
heresy  in  the  eye  of  the  stern  inquisitor ;  he  reserved 

»9  Robles,  Vida  de  Ximenez,  cap.  14.— Suma  de  la  Vida  de  Cisne- 
ros,  MS. — Gomez,  De  Rebus  gestis,  fol.  30. — Marmol,  Rebelion  de  los 
Moriscos,  lib.  i,  cap.  25. — Zegri  assumed  the  baptismal  name  of  the 
Great  Captain,  Gonz.ilo  Hernandez,  whose  prowess  he  had  experienced 
in  a  personal  rencontre  in  the  vega  of  Granada.  Marmol,  Rebelion 
de  los  Muriscos,  ubi  supra. — Suraa  de  la  Vida  de  Cisneros,  MS. 

•>  Hist.  d'Espagnc,  torn.  viil.  p.  195. 


PERSECUTIONS  IN  GRANADA. 


413 


for  his  university  of  Alcala  three  hundred  works,  in- 
deed, relating  to  medical  science,  in  which  the  Moors 
were  as  pre-eminent  in  that  day  as  the  Europeans  were 
deficient ;  but  all  the  rest,  amounting  to  many  thou- 
sands," he  consigned  to  indiscriminate  conflagration." 
This  melancholy  auto  da  fe,  it  will  be  recollected, 
was  celebrated,  not  by  an  unlettered  barbarian,  but  by 
a  cultivated  prelate,  who  was  at  that  very  time  actively 
employing  his  large  revenues  in  the  publication  of  the 
most  stupendous  literary  work  of  the  age,  and  in  the 
endowment  of  the  most  learned  university  in  Spain.'' 
It  took  place,  not  in  the  darkness  of  the  Middle  Ages, 
but  in  the  dawn  of  the  sixteenth  century,  and  in  the 

"  According  to  Robles  (Vida  de  Ximenez,  p.  104)  and  the  Suma 
de  la  Vida  de  Cisneros,  1,005,000;  to  Conde  (El  Nubiense,  Descrip- 
cion  de  Espana,  p.  4,  note),  80,000;  to  Gomez  and  others,  5000. 
There  are  scarcely  any  data  for  arriving  at  probability  in  this  mon- 
strous discrepancy.  The  famous  library  of  the  Ommeyades  at  Cor- 
dova was  said  to  contain  600,000  volumes.  It  had  long  since  been 
dissipated ;  and  no  '  nilar  collection  had  been  attempted  in  Granada, 
where  learning  was  never  in  that  palmy  state  which  it  reached  under 
the  Cordovan  dynasty.  Still,  however,  learned  men  were  to  be  found 
there,  and  the  Moorish  metropolis  would  naturally  be  the  depository 
of  such  literary  treasures  as  had  escaped  the  general  shipwreck  of  time 
and  accident.  On  the  whole,  the  estimate  of  Gomez  would  appear 
much  too  small,  and  that  of  Robles  as  disproportionately  exaggerated. 
Conde,  better  instructed  in  Arabic  lore  than  any  of  his  predecessors, 
may  be  found,  perhaps,  here,  as  elsewhere,  the  best  authority. 

*»  Gomez,  De  Rebus  gestis,  lib.  2,  fol.  30. — Marmol,  Rebelion  de 
los  Moriscos,  lib.  i,  cap.  25. —  Robles,  Vida  de  Ximenez,  cap.  14. — 
Suma  de  la  Vida  de  Cisneros,  MS. — Quintanilla,  Archetypo,  p.  58. 

»3  Yet  the  archbishop  might  find  some  countenance  for  his  fanaticism 
in  the  most  polite  capital  of  Europe.  The  faiiilfy  of  Theology  in  Paris, 
some  few  years  later,  declared  "que  e'en  ^tait  fait  de  la  religion,  si  on 
permettait  I'etude  du  Grec  et  de  I'H^breu !"  Villers,  Essai  sur  1" Esprit 
et  rinfluence  de  la  Reformation  de  Luther  (Paris,  1820),  p.  64,  note. 


1 


414 


XIMENES. 


midst  of  an  enlightened  nation,  deeply  indebted  for  its 
own  progress  to  these  very  stores  of  Arabian  wisdom. 
It  forms  a  counterpart  to  the  imputed  sacrilege  of 
Omar,"*  eight  centuries  before,  and  shows  that  bigotry 
is  the  same  in  every  faith  and  every  age. 

The  mischief  occasioned  by  this  act,  far  from  being 
limited  to  the  immediate  loss,  continued  to  be  felt 
still  more  severely  in  its  consequences.  Such  as  could, 
secreted  the  manuscripts  in  their  possession  till  an 
opportunity  occurred  for  conveying  them  out  of  the 
country;  and  many  thousands  in  this  way  were  pri- 
vately shipped  over  to  Barbary."*  Thus  Arabian  litera- 
ture became  rare  in  the  libraries  of  the  very  country 
to  which  it  was  indigenous;  and  Arabic  scholarship, 
once  so  flourishing  in  Spain,  and  that  too  in  far  less 
polished  ages,  gradually  fell  into  decay  from  want  of 
aliment  to  sustain  it.  Such  were  the  melancholy  re- 
sults of  this  literary  persecution ;  more  mischievous, 
in  one  view,  than  even  that  directed  against  life ;  for 
the  loss  of  an  individual  will  scarcely  be  felt  beyond 
his  own  generation,  while  the  annihilation  of  a  valuable 
work,  or,  in  other  words,  of  mind  itself  embodied  in  a 
permanent  form,  is  a  loss  to  all  future  time. 

'4  Gibbon's  argument,  if  it  does  not  shake  the  foundations  of  the 
whole  story  of  the  Alexandrian  conflagration,  may  at  least  raise  a 
natural  skepticism  as  to  the  pretended  amount  and  value  of  the  works 
destroyed. 

»s  The  learned  Granadine,  Leo  Africanus,  who  emigrated  to  Fez 
after  the  fall  of  the  capital,  notices  a  single  collection  of  3000  manu- 
scripts belonging  to  an  individual,  which  he  saw  in  Algiers,  whither 
they  had  been  secretly  brought  by  the  Moriscos  from  Spain.  Conde, 
Donjinacion  de  los  Arabes,  prologo. — Casiri,  Bibliotheca  Escurialensis, 
torn,  i,  p.  172. 


PERSECUTIONS  IN  GRANADA. 


415 


The  high  hand  w'.th  which  Ximenes  now  carried 
measures  excited  serious  alarm  in  many  of  the  more 
discreet  and  temperate  Castilians  in  the  city.  They 
besought  him  to  use  greater  forbearance,  remonstrating 
against  his  obvious  violations  of  the  treaty,  as  well  as 
against  the  expediency  of  forced  conversions,  which 
could  not,  in  the  nature  of  things,  be  lasting.  But 
the  pertinacious  prelate  only  replied  that  "a  tamer 
policy  might,  indeed,  suit  temporal  matters,  but  not 
those  in  which  the  interests  of  the  soul  were  at  stake ; 
that  the  unbeliever,  if  he  could  not  be  drawn,  should 
be  driven,  into  the  way  of  salvation ;  and  that  it  was 
no  time  to  stay  the  hand,  when  the  ruins  of  Mahom- 
etan ism  were  tottering  to  their  foundations."  He 
accordingly  went  on  with  unflinching  resolution."* 

But  the  patience  of  the  Moors  themselves,  which 
had  held  out  so  marvellously  under  this  system  of 
oppression,  began  now  to  be  exhausted.  Many  signs 
of  this  might  be  discerned  by  much  less  acuie  optics 
than  those  of  the  archbishop ;  but  his  were  blinded  by 
the  arrogance  of  success.  At  length,  in  this  inflam- 
mable state  of  public  feeling,  an  incident  occurred 
which  led  to  a  general  explosion. 

Three  of  Ximenes's  servants  were  sent  on  some  busi- 
ness to  the  Albaycin,  a  quarter  inhabited  exclusively 
by  Moors,  and  encompassed  by  walls,  which  separated 
it  from  the  rest  of  the  city.''  These  men  had  made 
themselves  peculiarly  odious  to  the  ;  .;ople  by  their 

a*  Gomez,  De  Rebus  gestis,  fol.  30, — Abarca,  Reyes  de  Aragon,  rey 
30,  cap,  10. 

«7  Casiri,  Bibliotheca  Escurialensis,  torn.  ii.  p.  281. — Pedraza,  An- 
tigUedad  de  Granada,  lib.  3,  cap.  10. 


i 


'1'  ■  ^i 


II 


4i6 


XIMENES. 


activity  in  their  master's  service.  A  dispute,  having 
arisen  between  them  and  some  inhabitants  of  the 
quarter,  came  at  last  to  blows,  when  two  of  the  ser- 
vants were  massacred  on  the  spot,  and  their  comrade 
escaped  with  difficulty  from  the  infuriated  mob."*  The 
affair  operated  as  a  signal  for  insurrection.  The  in- 
habitants of  the  district  ran  to  arms,  got  possession  of 
the  gates,  barricaded  the  streets,  and  in  a  few  hours  the 
whole  Albaycin  was  in  rebellion. "9 

In  the  course  of  the  following  night,  a  large  number 
of  the  enraged  populace  made  their  way  into  the  city 
to  the  quarters  of  Ximenes,  with  the  purpose  of  taking 
summary  vengeance  on  his  head  for  all  his  persecutions. 
Fortunately,  his  palace  was  strong,  and  defended  by 
numerous  resolute  and  well-armed  attendants.  The 
latter,  at  the  approach  of  the  rioters,  implored  their 
master  to  make  his  escape,  if  possible,  to  the  fortress 
of  the  Alhambra,  where  the  count  of  Tendilla  was 
established.  But  the  intrepid  prelate,  who  held  life 
too  cheap  to  be  a  coward,  exclaimed,  "  God  forbid  I 
should  think  of  my  own  safety,  when  so  many  of  the 
faithful  are  perilling  theirs !  No,  I  will  stand  to  my 
post,  and  await  there,  if  Heaven  wills  it,  the  crown  of 
martyrdom.  "3"  It  must  be  confessed  he  well  deserved  it. 

=*  Gomez,  De  Rebus  gestis,  fol.  31. — There  are  some  discrepancies— 
not  important,  however — between  the  narrative  of  Gomez  and  the 
other  authorities.  Gomez,  considering  his  uncommon  opportunities 
of  information,  is  worth  them  all. 

»9  Suma  de  la  Vida  de  Cisneros,  MS. — Gomez,  De  Rebus  gestis, 
lib.  2,  fol.  31. — Marmol,  Rebelion  de  los  Moriscos,  lib.  i,  cap.  26. 

33  Robles,  Vida  de  Ximenez,  cap.  14. — Mariana,  Hist,  de  Espana, 
torn.  ii.  lib.  27,  cap.  5. — Quintanilla,  Archetypo,  p.  56. — Peter  Martyr, 
Opus  Epist.,  epist.  21a. 


PERSECUTIONS  IN  GRANADA. 


417 


The  building,  however,  proved  too  strong  for  the 
utmost  efforts  of  the  mob ;  and  at  length,  after  some 
hours  of  awful  suspense  and  agitation  to  the  beleaguered 
inmates,  the  count  of  Tend  ilia  arrived  in  person  at  the 
head  of  his  g^-^-ds,  and  succeeded  in  dispersing  the 
.  insurgents  and  a  ving  them  back  to  their  own  quar- 
ters. But  no  exttions  could  restore  order  to  the 
tumultuous  populace,  or  induce  them  to  listen  to 
terms;  and  they  even  stoned  the  messenger  charged 
with  pacific  proposals  from  the  count  of  Tendilla. 
They  organized  themselves  under  leaders,  provided 
arms,  and  took  every  possible  means  for  maintaining 
their  defence.  It  seemed  as  if,  smitten  with  the  recol- 
lections of  ancient  liberty,  they  were  resolved  to  recover 
it  again  at  all  hazards.  3* 

At  length,  after  this  disorderly  state  of  things  had 
lasted  for  several  days,  Talavera,  the  archbishop  of 
Granada,  resolved  to  try  the  effect  of  his  personal 
influence,  hitherto  so  great  with  the  Moors,  by  visiting 
himself  the  disaffected  quarter.  This  noble  purpose 
he  put  in  execution,  in  spite  of  the  most  earnest 
remonstrances  of  his  friends.  He  was  attended  only 
by  his  chaplain,  bearing  the  crucifix  before  him,  and  a 
few  of  his  domestics,  on  foot  and  unarmed  like  himself. 
At  the  si^ht  of  their  venerable  pastor,  with  his  counte- 
nance beaming  with  the  same  serene  and  benign  ex- 
pression with  which  they  were  familiar  when  listening 
to  his  exhortations  from  the  pulpit,  the  passions  of  the 
multitude  were  stilled.  Every  one  seemed  willing  to 
abandon   himself  to  the  tender  recollections  of  the 

3'  Mariana,  Hist,  de  Espana,  ubi  sup. — Bleda,  Coronica,  lib.  5,  cap, 
93. — Mendoza,  Guerrade  Granada,  p.  11. 
Vol.  II. — 27  s* 


tl 


i| 


I  I 


418 


XIMENES. 


past ;  and  the  simple  people  crowded  around  the  good 
man,  kneeling  down  and  kissing  the  hem  of  his  robe, 
as  if  to  implore  his  benediction.  The  count  of  Ten- 
dilla  no  sooner  learned  the  issue,  than  he  followed  into 
the  Albaycin,  attended  by  a  handful  of  soldiers.  When 
he  had  reached  the  place  where  the  mob  was  gathered, 
he  threw  his  bonnet  into  the  midst  of  them,  in  token 
of  his  pacific  intentions.  The  action  was  received 
with  acclamations,  and  the  people,  whose  feelings  had 
now  taken  another  direction,  recalled  by  his  presence 
to  the  recollection  of  his  uniformly  mild  and  equitable 
rule,  treated  him  with  similar  respect  to  that  shown 
the  archbishop  of  Granada. 3» 

These  two  individuals  took  advantage  of  this  favor- 
able change  of  feeling  to  expostulate  with  the  Moors 
on  the  folly  and  desperation  of  their  conduct,  which 
must  involve  them  in  a  struggle  with  such  overwhelming 
odds  as  that  of  the  whole  Spanish  monarchy.  They 
implored  them  to  lay  down  their  arms  and  return  to 
their  duty,  in  which  event  they  pledged  themselves,  as 
lar  as  in  their  power,  to  allow  no  further  repetition  of 
the  grievances  complained  of,  and  to  intercede  for  their 
pardon  with  the  sovereigns.  The  count  testified  his 
sincerity,  by  leaving  his  wife  and  two  children  as 
hostages  in  the  heart  of  the  Albaycin ;  an  act  which 
must  be  admitted  to  imply  unbounded  confidence  in 
the  integrity  of  the  Moors.^^    These  various  measures, 

s»  Marmol,  Rebelion  de  los  Moriscos,  lib.  1,  cap.  26. — Peter  Mar- 
tyr, Opus  Epist.,  epist.  212. — Quintanilla,  Archetypo,  p.  56. — Bleda. 
Cordnica,  ubi  supra. 

33  Marmol,  Rebelion  de  los  Moriscos,  loc.  cit. — Mendoza,  Guerra 
de  Granada,  lib.  i,  p.  11. — That  such  confidence  was  justified,  maybe 
inferred  from  a  common  saying  of  Archbishop  Talavera,  "  That  Moor- 


PERSECUTIONS  IN  GRANADA, 


419 


-^> 


backed,  moreover,  by  the  counsels  and  authority  of 
some  of  the  chief  alfaquis,  had  the  effect  to  restore 
tranquillity  among  the  people,  who,  laying  aside  their 
hostile  preparations,  returned  once  more  to  their  regular 
employments.'* 

The  rumor  of  the  insurrection,  in  the  mean  while, 
with  the  usual  exaggeration,  reached  Seville,  where  the 
court  was  then  residing.  In  one  respect  rumor  did 
justice,  by  imputing  the  whole  blame  of  the  affair  to 
the  intemperate  zeal  of  Ximenes.  That  personage, 
with  his  usual  promptness,  had  sent  early  notice  of  the 
affair  to  the  queen  by  a  negro  slave  uncommonly  fleet 
of  foot.  But  the  fellow  had  become  intoxicated  by  the 
way,  and  the  court  were  several  days  without  any  more 
authentic  tidings  than  general  report.  The  king,  who 
had  always  regarded  Ximenes's  elevation  to  the  primacy, 
to  the  prejudice,  as  the  reader  may  remember,  of  his 
own  son,  with  dissatisfaction,  could  not  now  restrain 
his  indignation,  but  was  heard  to  exclaim  tauntingly 
to  the  queen,  "So  we  are  like  to  pay  dear  for  your 
archbishop,  whose  rashness  has  lost  us  in  a  few  hours 
what  we  have  been  years  in  acquiring."^ 

The  queen,  confounded  at  the  tidings,  and  unable  to 
comprehend  the  silence  of  Ximenes,  instantly  wrote  to 
him  in  the  severest  terms,  demanding  an  explanation 
of  the  whole  proceeding.     The  archbishop  saw  his 

ish  works  and  Spanish  faith  were  all  that  were  wanting  to  make  a  good 
Christian."  A  bitter  sarcasm  this  on  his  own  countrymen  1  Pedraza, 
Antigiiedad  de  Granada,  lib.  3,  cap.  10. 

34  Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  epist.  212.— Bleda,  ConSnica,  loc.  cit. 
— Marmol,  Rebelion  de  los  Moriscos,  ubi  supra. 

35  Mariana,  Hist,  de  Espafta,  torn.  ii.  lib.  27,  cap.  5. — Robles,  Vida 
de  Ximenez,  cap.  14. — Suma  de  la  Vida  de  Cisneros,  MS. 


.  1 

■'  '1 


Vs- 


420 


XIMENES. 


error  in  committing  affairs  of  moment  to  such  hands 
as  those  of  his  sable  messenger ;  and  the  lesson  stood 
him  in  good  stead,  according  to  his  moralizing  biog- 
rapher^  for  the  remainder  of  his  life.^*  He  hastened 
to  repair  his  fault  by  proceeding  to  Seville  in  person 
and  presenting  himself  before  the  sovereigns.  He  de- 
tailed to  them  the  history  of  all  the  past  transactions  j 
recapitulated  his  manifold  services,  the  arguments  and 
exhortations  he  had  used,  the  large  sums  he  had  ex- 
pended, and  his  various  expedients,  in  short,  for  effect- 
ing conversion,  before  resorting  to  severity.  He  boldly 
assumed  the  responsibility  of  the  whole  proceeding, 
acknowledging  that  he  had  purposely  avoided  commu- 
nicating his  plans  to  the  sovereigns  for  fear  of  opposi- 
tion. If  he  had  erred,  he  said,  it  could  be  imputed  to 
no  other  motive,  at  worst,  than  too  great  zeal  for  the 
interests  of  religion  ;  but  he  concluded  with  assuring 
them  that  the  present  position  of  affairs  was  the  best 
possible  for  their  purposes,  since  the  late  conduct  of 
the  Moors  involved  them  in  the  guilt,  and  consequently 
all  the  penalties,  of  treason,  and  that  it  would  be  an 
act  of  clemency  to  offer  pardon  on  the  alternatives  of 
conversion  or  exile  !  '^ 

The  archbishop's  discourse,  if  we  are  to  credit  his 
enthusiastic  biographer,  not  only  dispelled  the  clouds 
of  royal  indignation,  but  drew  forth  the  most  emphatic 
expressions  of  approbation. 3*  How  far  Ferdinand  and 
Isabella  were  moved  to  this  by  his  final  recommenda- 

3*  Gomez,  De  Rebus  gestis,  fol.  32.  —  Robles,  Vida  de  Ximenez, 
cap.  14. 

37  Gomez,  de  Rebus  gestis,  ubi  supra. 

38  Gomez,  De  Rebus  gestis,  fol.  33. — Suma  de  la  Vida  de  Cisnerosi 
MS. 


^ 


PERSECUTIONS  IN  GRANADA, 


421 


tion,  or  what,  in  clerical  language,  may  be  called  the 
"improvement  of  his  discourse,"  does  not  appear. 
They  did  not,  at  any  rate,  adopt  it  to  its  literal  ex- 
tent. In  due  time,  however,  commissioners  were  sent 
to  Granada,  fully  authorized  to  inquire  into  the  late 
disturbances  and  punish  their  guilty  authors.  In  the 
course  of  the  investigation,  many,  including  some  of 
the  principal  citizens,  were  imprisoned  on  suspicion. 
The  greater  part  made  their  peace  by  embracing  Chris- 
tianity. Many  others  sold  their  estates  and  migrated 
to  Barbary;  and  the  remainder  of  the  population, 
whether  from  fear  of  punishment  or  contagion  of  ex- 
ample, abjured  their  ancient  superstition  and  consented 
to  receive  baptism.  The  whole  number  of  converts 
was  estimated  at  about  fifty  thousand,  whose  future 
relapses  promised  an  almost  inexhaustible  supply  for 
the  fiery  labors  of  the  Inquisition.  From  this  period 
the  name  of  Moors,  which  had  gradually  superseded  the 
primitive  one  of  Spanish  Arabs,  gave  way  to  the  title 
of  Moriscos,  by  which  this  unfortunate  people  con- 
tinued to  be  known  through  the  remainder  of  their 
protracted  existence  in  the  Peninsula.* 

The  circumstances  under  which  this  important  revo- 
lution in  religion  was  effected  in  the  whole  population 
of  this  great  city  will  excite  only  feelings  of  disgust  at 
the  present  day,  mingled,  indeed,  with  compassion  for 

39  Bleda,  Cor6nica,  lib.  5,  cap.  23. — Mariana,  Hist,  de  Espafia,  torn, 
ii.  lib.  27,  cap.  5. — Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  epist.  215. — Marmot, 
Rebelion  de  los  Moriscos,  lib.  i,  can.  27. — Gomez,  De  Rebus  gestis, 
lib.  2,  fol.  32. — Lanuza,  Historias,  torn.  i.  lib.  i,  cap.  11. — Carbajal, 
Anales,  MS.,  ano  1500. — Bernaldez,  Reyes  Cat61icos.  MS.,  cap.  159, 
— The  last  author  carries  the  number  of  converts  in  Granada  and  its 
environs  to  70,000. 


432 


XIMENES. 


the  unhappy  beings  who  so  heedlessly  incurred  the 
heavy  liabilities  attached  to  their  new  faith.  Every 
Spaniard,  doubtless,  anticipated  the  political  advan- 
tages likely  to  result  from  a  measure  which  divested 
the  Moors  of  the  peculiar  immunities  secured  by  the 
treaty  of  capitulation  and  subjected  them  at  once  to 
the  law  of  the  land.  It  is  equally  certain,  however, 
that  they  attached  great  value  in  a  spiritual  view  to  the 
mere  show  of  conversion,  placing  implicit  confidence 
in  the  purifying  influence  of  the  waters  of  baptism,  to 
whomever  and  under  whatever  circumstances  adminis- 
tered. Even  the  philosophic  Martyr,  as  little  tinctured 
with  bigotry  as  any  of  the  time,  testifies  his  joy  at  the 
conversion,  on  the  ground  that,  although  it  might  not 
penetrate  beneath  the  crust  of  infidelity  which  had 
formed  over  the  mind  of  the  older  and  of  course  in- 
veterate Mussulman,  yet  it  would  have  full  effect  on  his 
posterity,  subjected  from  the  cradle  to  the  searching 
operation  of  Christian  discipline.*' 

With  regard  to  Ximenes,  the  real  author  of  the 
work,  whatever  doubts  were  entertained  of  his  discre- 
tion in  the  outset,  they  were  completely  dispelled  by 
the  results.     All  concurred  in  admiring  the  invincible 

*>  "  Tu  vero  inquies,"  he  says,  in  a  letter  to  the  cardinal  of  Santa 
Cruz,  "  iisdem  in  suum  Mahometem  vivent  animis,  atque  id  jure 
merlto  susplcandum  est.  Durum  namque  majorum  instituta  relin- 
quere ;  attamen  ego  existimo,  consultum  optima  fuisse  ii«oruni  ad- 
mittere  postulata:  paulatim  namque  nova  superveniente  discipline, 
juvenum  saltern  et  infantum  atque  eo  tutius  nepotum,  inanibus  illis 
superstitlonibus  abrasis,  novis  imbuentur  ritibus.  De  senescentibus, 
qui  callosis  animis  induruerunt,  baud  ego  quidem  id  futurum  inficior." 
Opus  Epist.,  epist.  215. — Gonsalvo  de  Cordova  expresses  himself  in  a 
similar  tone  of  satisfaction  in  a  letter  to  the  secretary  Almazan,  Carta 
fecha  en  Carag09a  (Siracusa?),  April  i6th,  1501,  MS. 


PERSECUTIONS  IN  GRANADA. 


423 


energy  of  the  man  who,  in  the  face  of  such  mighty 
obstacles,  had  so  speedily  effected  this  momentous 
revolution  in  the  faith  of  a  people  bred  from  chil<i- 
hood  in  the  deadliest  hostility  to  Christianity;**  and 
the  good  archbishop  Talavera  was  heard  in  the  fulness 
of  his  heart  to  exclaim  that  "Ximenes  had  achieved 
greater  triumphs  than  even  Ferdinand  and  Isabella; 
since  they  had  conquered  only  the  soil,  while  he  had 
gained  the  souls,  of  Granada!"*" 

4«  "  Magnae  deinccps,"  says  Gomez,  "  apud  omnes  venerationi  Xime- 
nius  esse  coepit. — Porrd  plus  mentis  acie  videre  qukin  solcnt  homines 
credebatur,  qudd  re  ancipiti,  neque  plane  confirmata,  barbard  civitate 
adhuc  suum  Mahumetum  spirante,  tanta  animi  contentione,  ut  Christi 
doctrinam  amplcctcrentur,  laboraverat  at  effecerat."  (De  Rebus  gestis, 
fol.  33.)  The  panegyric  of  the  Spaniard  is  endorsed  by  Fl^chier  (His- 
ton%  de  Ximen^s,  p.  119),  who,  in  the  age  of  Louis  XIV.,  displays  all 
the  bigotry  of  that  of  Ferdinand  and  Isabella. 

43  Talavera,  as  I  have  already  noticed,  had  caused  the  offices,  cate- 
chisms, and  other  religious  exercises  to  be  translated  into  Arabic  for 
the  use  of  the  converts ;  proposing  to  extend  the  translation  at  some 
future  time  to  the  great  body  of  the  Scriptures.  That  time  had  now 
arrived ;  but  Ximenes  vehemently  remonstrated  against  the  measure. 
"  It  would  be  throwing  pearls  before  swine,"  said  he,  "  to  open  the 
Scriptures  to  persons  in  their  low  state  of  ignorance,  who  could  not 
fail,  as  St.  Paul  says,  to  wrest  them  to  their  own  destruction.  The 
word  of  God  should  be  wrapped  in  discreet  mystery  from  the  vulgar, 
who  feel  little  reverence  for  what  is  plain  and  obvious.  It  was  for  this 
reason  that  our  Saviour  himself  clothed  his  doctrines  in  parables,  when 
he  addressed  the  people.  The  Scriptures  should  be  confined  to  the 
three  ancient  languages,  which  God  with  mystic  import  permitted  to 
be  inscribed  over  the  head  of  his  crucified  Son ;  and  the  vernacular 
should  be  reserved  for  such  devotional  and  moral  treatises  as  holy  men 
indite,  in  order  to  quicken  the  soul,  and  turn  it  from  the  pursuit  of 
worldly  vanities  to  heavenly  contemplation."  De  Rebus  gestis,  fol. 
3a,  33.  The  narrowest  opinion,  as  usual,  prevailed,  and  Talavera 
abandoned  his  wise  and  benevolent  purpose.  The  sagacious  argu- 
ments of  the  primate  lead  his  biographer,  Gomez,  to  conclude  that 


434 


XIMENES. 


he  had  a  prophetic  knowledge  of  the  coming  heresy  of  Luther,  which 
owed  so  much  of  its  success  to  the  vernacular  versions  of  the  Scrip- 
tures; in  which  probable  opinion  he  is  futhfully  echoed,  as  usual,  by 
the  good  biiihop  of  Nismes,  Flechicr,  Hist,  de  Xiracn^s,  pp.  X17- 
"9. 


CHAPTER    VII. 

RISING    IN    THE    ALPUJARRAS.— DEATH    OF    AF-ONSO    DE 
AGUILAR. — EDICT   AtMINST   THE    MOORS. 

x5oo-i5oa. 

Rising  in  the  Alpujarnis. — Expedition  to  the  Sierra  Vermcja. — Alonso 
de  Aguilar. — His  noble  Ctiaractcr,  and  Death. — Bloody  Rout  of  the 
Spnniards. — Final  Submission  to  Ferdinand. —  Cruel  Policy  of  the 
Victors.  —  Commemorative  Ballads.  —  Edict  against  the  Moors. — 
Causes  of  Intolerance. — Last  Notice  of  the  Moors  under  the  pres- 
ent Reign. 

While  affairs  went  forward  so  triumphantly  in  the 
capital  of  Granada,  they  excited  general  discontent 
in  other  parts  of  that  kingdom,  especially  the  wild 
regions  of  the  Alpujarras.  This  range  of  maritime 
Alps,  which  stretches  to  the  distance  of  seventeen 
leagues  in  a  southeasterly  direction  from  the  Moorish 
capital,  sending  out  its  sierras  like  so  many  broad 
arms  towards  the  Mediterranean,  was  thickly  sprinkled 
with  Moorish  villages,  cresting  the  bald  summits  of 
the  mountains,  or  checkering  the  green  slopes  and  val- 
leys which  lay  between  them.  Its  simple  inhabitants, 
locked  up  within  the  lonely  recesses  of  their  hills,  and 
accustomed  to  a  life  of  penury  and  toil,  had  escaped 
the  corruptions,  as  well  as  refinements,  of  civilization. 
In  ancient  times  they  had  afforded  a  hardy  militia  for 
the  princes  of  Granada ;  and  they  now  exhibited  an 
unshaken  attachment  to  their  ancient  institutions  and 

(425) 


I 


m 


4a6 


mSlNG  IN  THE  ALPUJARRAS. 


religion,  which  had  been  somewhat  effaced  in  the  great 
cities  by  more  intimate  intercourse  with  the  Europeans. 

These  warlike  mountaineers  beheld  with  gathering 
resentment  the  faithless  conduct  pursued  towards  their 
countrymen,  which  tliey  had  good  reason  to  fear  would 
soon  be  extended  to  themselves ;  and  their  fiery  passions 
were  inflamed  to  an  ungovernable  height  by  the  public 
apostasy  of  Granada.  They  at  length  resolvec'  to  antici- 
pate any  similar  attempt  on  themselves  by  a  general  in- 
surrection. They  accordingly  seized  on  the  fortresses 
and  strong  passes  throughout  the  country,  and  began 
as  usual  with  forays  into  i.he  lands  of  the  Christians. 

These  bold  acts  excited  much  alarm  in  the  capital, 
and  the  count  of  Tendilla  took  vigorous  measures  for 
quenching  the  rebellion  in  its  birth.  Gonsalvo  de 
Cordova,  his  early  pupil,  but  who  might  now  well  be 
his  master  in  the  art  of  war,  was  at  that  time  residing 
in  Granada;  and  Tendilla  availed  himself  of  his  assist- 
ance to  enforce  a  hasty  muster  of  levies  and  march  at 
once  against  the  enemy. 

His  first  movement  was  against  Huejar,  a  fortified- 
town  situated  in  one  of  the  eastern  ranges  of  the  Alpu- 

» Alpujarras, — an  Arabic  word,  signifying  "  land  of  warriors,"  ac- 
cording to  Saiazar  de  Mendoza.  (Monarquia,  torn.  ii.  p.  138.)  Ac- 
cording to  the  more  accurate  and  learned  Conde,  it  is  derived  from  an 
Arabic  term  for  "  pasturage,"  (El  Nubiense,  Descripcion  de  Espana, 

p.  187.) 

"La  Alpuxarra,  aquessa  sierra 
que  al  Sol  la  c  'I'viz  levania 
y  que  poblada  de  Villas, 
es  Mar  de  peiias,  y  plantas, 
adonde  sus  poblaciones 
ondas  navegan  de  plata." 

Calderon  (Comedias  (Madrid,  1760),  torn.  i.  p.  353),  whose  gorgeous 
muse  sheds  a  blaze  ol  glory  over  the  rudest  scenes. 


DEATH  OF  ALCNSO  DE  AGUILAR. 


427 


jarras,  whose  inhabitants  had  taken  the  lead  in  the 
insurrection.  The  enterprise  was  attended  with  more 
difficulty  than  was  expected.  "God's  enemies,"  to 
borrow  the  charitable  epithet  of  the  Castilian  chroni- 
clers, had  ploughed  up  the  lands  in  the  neighborhood  \ 
and,  as  the  light  cavalry  of  the  Spaniards  was  working 
its  way  through  the  deep  furrows,  the  Moors  opened 
the  canals  which  intersected  the  fields,  and  in  a  mo- 
ment the  horses  were  floundering  up  to  their  girths  in 
the  mire  and  water.  Thus  embarrassed  in  their  pro- 
gress, the  Spaniards  presented  a  fatal  mark  to  the 
Moorish  missiles,  which  rained  on  them  with  pitiless 
fury;  and  it  was  not  without  great  efforts  and  consid- 
erable loss  that  they  gained  a  firm  landing  on  the  oppo- 
site side.  Undismayed,  however,  they  then  charged 
the  enemy  with  such  vivacity  as  compelled  him  to  give 
way  and  take  refuge  within  the  defences  of  the  town. 

No  impediment  could  now  check  the  ardor  of  the 
assailants.  They  threw  themselves  from  their  horses, 
and  bringing  forward  the  scaling-ladders,  planted  them 
against  the  walls.  Gonsalvo  was  the  first  to  gain  the 
summit;  and,  as  a  powerful  Moor  endeavored  to  thrust 
him  from  the  topmost  round  of  the  ladder,  he  grasped 
the  battlements  firmly  with  his  left  hand  and  dealt  the 
infidel  such  a  blow  with  the  sword  in  his  right  as 
brought  him  heaalong  to  the  ground.  He  then  leapt 
into  the  place,  and  was  speedily  followed  by  his  troops. 
The  enemy  made  a  brief  and  ineffectual  resistance. 
The  greater  part  were  put  to  the  sword;  the  remainder, 
including  the  women  and  children,  were  made  slaves, 
and  the  town  was  delivered  up  to  pillage.' 

»  Marmol,  Kehelion  de  los  Moriscos,  torn.  i.  lib.  i,  cap.  28. — Quin* 


i    i; 


:;  ■  ! 


438 


RISING  IN  THE  ALPUJARRAS. 


The  severity  of  this  military  execution  had  not  the 
effect  of  intimidating  the  insurgents;  and  the  revolt 
wore  so  serious  an  aspect  that  King  Ferdinand  found 
it  necessary  to  take  the  field  in  person,  which  he  did 
at  the  head  of  as  complete  and  beautiful  a  body  of 
Castilian  chivalry  as  ever  graced  the  campaigns  of 
Granada. 3  Quitting  Alhendin,  the  place  of  rendez- 
vous, in  the  latter  end  of  February,  1500,  he  directed 
his  march  on  Lanjaron,  one  of  the  towns  most  active 
in  the  revolt,  and  perched  high  among  the  inaccessible 
fastnesses  of  the  sierra,  southeast  of  Granada. 

The  inhabitants,  trusting  to  the  natural  strength  of  a 
situation  which  had  once  baffled  the  arms  of  the  bold 
Moorish  chief  El  Zagal,  took  no  precautions  to  secure 
the  passes.  Ferdinand,  relying  on  this,  avoided  the 
more  direct  avenue  to  the  place,  and,  bringing  his  men 
by  a  circuitous  route  over  dangerous  ravines  and  dark 
and  dizzy  precipices,  where  the  foot  of  the  hunter  had 
seldom  ventured,  succeeded  at  length,  after  incredible 
toil  and  hazard,  in  reaching  an  elevated  point  which 
entirely  commanded  the  Moorish  fortress. 

Great  was  the  dismay  of  the  insurgents  at  the  appa- 
rition of  the  Christian  banners,  streaming  in  trium^.h 
in  the  upper  air  from  the  very  pinnacles  of  the  sierra. 
They  stoutly  persisted,  however,  in  the  refusal  to  sur- 
render.    But  their  works  were  too  feeble  to  stand  the 

tara,  Espanoles  celebres,  torn.  i.  p.  239. — Bleda,  Coronica,  lib.  5,  cap. 
23. — Bernaldez,  Reyes  Catolicos,  MS.,  cap.  159. — Abarca,  Reyes  de 
Aragon,  torn.  ii.  fol.  338. — Mendoza,  Guerra  de  Granada,  p.  12. 

3  If  we  ,ire  to  believe  Martyr,  the  royal  force  amounted  to  80,000 
foot  and  15,000  horse.  So  large  an  army,  so  promptly  brought  into 
the  field,  would  suggest  h.igh  ideas  of  the  resources  of  the  nation  ;  loo 
high,  indeed,  to  gain  credit,  even  from  Martyr,  without  confirmation. 


DEATH  OF  ALONSO   DE  AGUILAR. 


429 


assault  of  men  who  had  vanquished  the  more  formi- 
dable obstacles  of  nature ;  and,  after  a  short  struggle, 
the  place  was  carried  by  storm,  and  its  wretched  in- 
mates experienced  the  same  dreadful  fate  with  those  of 
Huejar.     (March  8th,  1500).* 

At  nearly  the  same  time,  the  count  of  Lerin  took 
several  other  fortified  places  in  the  Alpujarras,  in  one 
of  which  he  blew  up  a  mosque  filled  with  women  and 
Ciiildren.  Hostilities  were  carried  on  with  all  the 
ferocity  of  a  civil,  or  rather  servile,  war ;  and  the 
Spaniards,  repudiating  all  the  feelings  of  courtesy  and 
generosity  which  they  had  once  shown  to  the  same 
men,  when  dealing  with  them  as  honorable  enemies, 
now  regarded  them  only  as  rebellious  vassals,  or  indeed 
slaves,  whom  the  public  safety  required  to  be  not 
merely  chastised,  but  exterminated. 

These  severities,  added  to  the  conviction  of  their 
own  impotence,  at  length  broke  the  spirit  of  the  Moors, 
who  were  reduced  to  the  most  humble  concessioiis; 
and  the  Catholic  king,  "unwilling  out  of  his  grcot 
clemency,"  says  Abarca,  "  to  stain  his  sword  .v'th  the 
blood  of  all  these  wild  beasts  of  the  Alpujarras,"  (Xin- 
sented  to  terms  which  may  be  deemed  reasd'hif ,  at 
least  in  comparison  with  his  previous  policy  Tliese 
were,  the  surrender  of  their  arms  and  fortresses,  :\v\ 
the  payment  of  the  round  sum  of  fifty  thousand  due  .its. ^ 

As  soon  as  tranquillity  was  re-established,  measures 

4  Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  epist.  215. — Abarca,  Reyes  do  Aragon, 
torn.  ii.  fol.  338. — Zurita,  Anales,  torn.  v.  lib.  3,  cap.  45. — CarbajiU, 
Anales,  MS.,  ano  1500. 

5  Marmol,  Rebclion  de  los  Moriscos,  lib.  i,  cap.  28. — Abarca,  Reyes 
de  Aragon,  torn.  ii.  fol.  338. — Bcmaklcz,  Reyes  Catolicos,  MS.,  cap, 
159. — Bleda,  Coronicn,  lib.  5,  cap.  24. 


\ 


'; 


i-i 


430 


JiJSING  IN  THE  ALPUJARRAS. 


were  taken  for  securing  it  permanently,  by  introducing 
Christianity  among  the  natives,  without  which  they 
never  could  remain  well  affected  to  their  present  gov- 
ernment. Holy  men  were,  therefore,  sent  as  mission- 
aries, to  admonish  them,  calmly  and  without  violence, 
of  their  errors,  and  to  instruct  them  in  the  great  truths 
of  revelation.*  Various  immunities  were  also  proposed 
as  an  additional  incentive  to  conversion,  including  an 
entire  exemption  to  the  convert  from  the  payment  of 
his  share  of  the  heavy  mulr*  lately  imposed.'  The  wis- 
dom of  these  temperate  measures  became  every  day 
more  visible,  in  the  conversion  not  merely  of  the  simple 
mountaineers,  but  of  nearly  all  the  population  of  the 
great  cities  of  Baza,  Guadix,  and  Almeria,  who  con- 
sented before  the  end  of  the  year  to  abjure  their  ancient 
religion  and  receive  baptism.' 

This  defection,  however,  caused  great  scandal  among 
the  more  sturdy  of  their  countrymen,  and  a  new  insur- 
rection broke  out  on  the  eastern  confines  of  the  Alpu- 
jarras  (Dec.  1500),  which  was  suppressed  with  similar 
circumstances  of  stern  severity,  and  a  similar  exaction 
of  a  heavy  sum  of  money, — money,  whose  doubtful 
efficacy  may  be  discerned,  sometimes  in  staying,  but 
more  frequently  in  stimulating,  the  arm  of  persecution.' 


*  Bleda,  Cor6nica,  lib.  5,  cap.  24. — Beraaldez,  Reyes  Calolicos,  MS., 
cap.  165. 

7  Privilegios  d  los  Moros  de  Valdelecrin  y  las  Alpuxarras  que  se 
convirtieren,  d  30  de  Julio  de  1500.  Archivo  de  Simancas,  apud  Mem. 
de  U  Acad,  de  Hist.,  tom   vi.  apend.  14. 

8  Carbajal,  Anales,  MS.,  ano  1500. — Garibay,  Compendio,  tom.  ii. 
lib.  19,  cap.  10. 

»  Carbajal,  Anales,  MS.,  alio  1501. — Zurita,  Anales,  tom.  v.  lib.  4, 
tap.  27i  3I' 


DEATH  OF  ALONSO  DE  AGUILAR. 


4,^1 


But  while  the  murmurs  of  rebellion  died  away  in  the 
east,  they  were  heard  in  thunders  from  the  distant  hills 
on  the  western  borders  of  Granada.  This  district, 
comprehending  the  sierras  Vermeja  and  Villa  Luenga, 
in  the  neighborhood  of  Ronda,  was  peopled  by  a  war- 
like race,  among  whom  was  the  African  tribe  of  Gan- 
dules,  whose  blood  boiled  with  the  same  tropical  fervor 
as  that  which  glowed  in  the  veins  of  their  ancestors. 
They  had  early  shown  symptoms  of  discontent  at  the 
late  proceedings  in  the  capital.  The  duchess  of  Arcos, 
widow  of  the  great  marquis  duke  of  Cadiz,  whose 
estates  lay  in  that  quarter,"  used  her  personal  exertions 
to  appease  them ;  and  the  government  made  the  most 
earnest  assurances  of  its  intention  to  respect  whatever 
had  been  guaranteed  by  the  treaty  of  capitulation." 
But  they  had  learned  to  place  little  trust  in  princes  \ 
and  the  rapidly  extending  apostasy  of  their  countrymen 
exasperated  them  to  srch  a  degree  that  they  at  length 
broke  out  in  the  most  atrocious  acts  of  violence ;  mur- 
dering the  Christian  missionaries,  and  kidnapping,  if 
report  be  true,  many  Spaniards  of  l)oth  s'?xe<?,  whom 
they  sold  as  '•lives  in  Africa.  They  wore  accused,  with 
far  more  probability,  of  entering  into  a  secret  corre- 
spondence with  their  brethren  on  the  opposite  shore,  in 
order  to  secure  their  support  in  the  meditated  revolt." 


■ii; 


'o  The  great  marquis  of  Cadiz  was  tliird  count  of  Arcos,  from  wliicli 
his  descendants  took  their  title  or.  the  resumption  of  Cadiz  by  the 
crown  after  his  death.     Mendoza,  Dignidades,  hb.  3,  cap.  8,  17. 

"  See  two  letters,  dated  Seville,  January  and  February,  1500,  ad- 
dressed by  Ferdinand  and  Isabella  to  the  inhabitants  of  the  Serrania 
dc  Ronda,  preserved  in  the  Archives  of  Simancas,  apud  Mem.  de  la 
Acad,  de  Hist.,  toiti.  vi.  Ilust.  15. 

"  Bcrnaldez,  Reyes  Catolicos,  MS.,  cap.  165. — Bleda,  Coronlca,  lib. 


432 


RISING  IN  THE  ALPUJARRAS, 


The  government  displayed  its  usual  promptness  and 
energy  on  this  occasion.  Orders  were  issued  to  the 
principal  chiefs  and  cities  of  Andalusia  to  muster  their 
forces  with  all  possible  despatch  and  concentrate  them 
on  Ronda.  Tlie  summons  was  obeyed  with  such  alacrity 
that  in  the  course  of  a  very  it.^  weeks  the  streets  of 
ti>at  busy  city  were  thronged  with  a  shining  array  of 
^va-lio^3  drawn  from  all  the  principal  towns  of  Anda- 

5,  cap.  25. — Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  epist.  221. — The  complaints  of 
til*.  Spanish  and  African  Moors  to  the  Sultan  of  Egypt,  or  of  Babylon, 
as  iie  was  then  usually  styled,  had  drawn  from  that  prince  sharp 
remonstrances  to  the  Catholic  sovereigns  against  their  persecutions 
of  the  Moslems,  accompanied  by  menaces  of  strict  retaliation  on  the 
viiinstians  in  his  dominions.  In  order  to  avert  such  calamitous  conse- 
quences, Peter  Martyr  was  sent  as  ambasva  ^or  to  Egypt.  He  left 
(jranada  in  August,  1501,  proceeded  to  Venice,  and  embarked  there  for 
Alexandria,  which  place  he  reached  in  December.  Though  cautioned, 
on  his  arrival,  that  his  mission,  in  the  present  exasperated  state  of  feel- 
ing at  the  court,  might  cost  him  his  head,  the  dauntless  envoy  sailed 
up  the  Nile  under  a  Mameluke  guard  to  Grand  Cairo.  Far  from 
experiencing  any  outrage,  however,  he  was  courteously  received  by 
the  Sultan ;  although  the  ambassndor  declined  compromising  the 
dignity  of  the  court  he  represented,  by  paying  the  usual  humiliating 
mark  of  obeisance,  in  prostrating  himself  on  the  ground  in  the  royal 
presence ;  an  independent  bearing  highly  satisfactory  to  the  Castilian 
historians.  (See  Gmibay,  Compendio,  torn.  ii.  Ub.  19,  cap.  12.)  He 
had  three  audiences,  in  which  he  succeeded  so  completely  in  effacing 
the  unfavorabk:  impressions  of  the  Moslem  prince  that  the  latter  not 
only  dismiss..!  him  with  liberal  presents,  but  granted,  at  his  request, 
several  important  privileges  to  the  Christian  residents,  and  the  pilgrims 
to  the  Holy  Land,  which  lay  v  it). in  hi  c'ominions.  Martyr's  account 
of  this  interesting  visit,  which  gav.-  him  ample  opf'Ortunity  for  studying 
the  manners  of  a  nation,  and  seeing  the  stupenJ'Vis  monuments  of 
ancient  art,  then  little  familir-r  to  Europeans,  was  published  in  Latin, 
under  the  title  of  "  De  Legatione  Babylonica,"  111  three  books,  appended 
to  his  more  celebrated  "  Decades  dc  Kebus  Oceanicis  et  Novo  Oibe." 
Mazzuchelli  (Scrittori  d'  Italia,  wt<?Anghiera)  notices  an  edition  which 
he  had  seen  published  separately,  without  date  or  name  of  the  printer. 


DEATH  OF  ALONSO  DE  AGUILAR. 


433 


lusia.  Seville  sent  three  hundred  horse  and  two  thou- 
sand foot.  The  principal  leaders  of  the  expedition 
were  the  count  of  Cifuentcs,  who,  as  assistant  of  Seville, 
commanded  the  troops  of  that  city;  the  count  of 
Urefia,  and  Alonso  de  Aguilar,  elder  brother  of  the 
Great  Captain,  and  distinguished  like  him  for  the 
highest  qualities  of  mind  and  person. 

It  was  determined  by  the  chiefs  to  strike  at  once  into 
the  heart  of  the  Sierra  Vermeja,  or  Red  Sierra,  as  it 
was  called  from  the  color  of  its  rocks,  rising  to  the 
east  of  Ronda,  and  the  principal  theatre  of  insurrec- 
tion. On  the  1 8th  of  March,  1501,  the  little  army 
encamped  before  Monarda,  on  the  skirts  of  a  mountain, 
where  the  Moors  were  understood  to  have  assembled  in 
considerable  force.  They  had  not  been  long  in  these 
quarters  before  parties  of  the  enemy  were  seen  hover- 
ing along  the  slopes  of  the  mountain,  from  which  the 
Christian  camp  was  divided  by  a  narrow  river, — the 
Rio  Verde,  probably,  which  has  gained  such  mournful 
celebrity  in  Spanish  song."  Aguilar's  troops,  who  oc- 
cupied the  van,  were  so  much  roused  by  the  sight  of 
the  enemy  that  a  small  party,  seizing  a  banner,  rushed 

13  "  Rio  .Verde,  Rio  Verde, 
Tiiito  va  en  saiigre  vica." 

Percy,  in  his  well-known  version  of  one  of  these  agreeable  romatices, 
adopts  the  tame  epithet  of  "  gentle  river,"  from  the  awkwardness,  he 
says,  of  the  literal  translation  of  "  verdant  river."  He  was  not  aware, 
it  appears,  that  the  Spanish  is  a  proper  name.  (See  Reliques  of 
Ancient  English  Poetry  (London,  1812),  vol.  i.  p.  357.)  The  more 
faithful  version  of  "green  river,"  however,  would  have  nothing  very 
unpoetical  in  it;  though  our  gifted  countryman  Bryant  seems  to  inti- 
mate, by  his  omission,  somewhat  of  a  similar  difficulty,  in  his  agree- 
able stanzas  on  the  beautiful  stream  of  that  name  in  New  England. 

Vol.  II.— 28  T 


# 


:1 


434 


mSING  IN  THE  ALPUJARRAS. 


across  the  stream  without  orders,  in  pursuit.  The  odds, 
however,  were  so  great  that  they  would  have  been  se- 
verely handled,  had  not  Aguilar,  while  he  bitterly  con- 
demned their  temerity,  advanced  promptly  to  their 
support  with  the  remainder  of  his  corps.  The  count 
of  Urefia  followed  with  the  central  division,  leaving 
the  count  of  Cifuentes  with  the  troops  of  Seville  to 
protect  the  camp.'* 

The  Moors  fell  back  as  the  Christians  advanced,  and, 
retreating  nimbly  from  point  to  point,  led  them  up  the 
rugged  steeps  far  into  the  recesses  of  the  mountains. 
At  length  they  reached  an  open  level,  encompassed  on 
all  sides  by  a  natural  rampart  of  rocks,  where  they  had 
deposited  their  valuable  effects,  together  with  their 
wives  and  children.  The  latter,  at  sight  of  the  in- 
vaders, uttered  dismal  cries,  and  fled  into  the  remoter 
depths  of  the  sierra. 

The  Christians  were  too  much  attracted  by  the  rich 
spoil  before  them  to  think  of  following,  and  dispersed 
in  every  direction  in  quest  of  plunder,  with  all  the 
heedlessness  and  insubordination  of  raw,  inexperienced 
levies.  It  was  in  vain  that  Alonso  de  Aguilar  reminded 
them  that  their  wily  enemy  was  still  unconquered,  or 
that  he  endeavored  to  force  them  into  the  ranks  again, 
and  restore  order.  No  one  heeded  his  call,  or  thought 
of  anything  beyond  the  present  moment  and  of  se- 
curing as  much  booty  to  himself  as  he  could  carry. 

'4  Zuiiiga,  Annales  de  Sevilla,  ano  1501. — Abarca,  Reyes  de  Aragon, 
torr..  ii.  p.  340. — Bleda,  Coronica,  lib.  5,  cap.  26. — Bernaldez,  Reyes 
Catolicos,  MS.,  cap.  165. — "  Fue  muy  gentil  capitan,"  says  Oviedo, 
speaking  of  this  latter  nobleman,  "y  valiente  lanza;  y  muchas  vezes 
dio  testimonio  grande  de  su  animoso  esfuerzo,"  Quincuagenas,  MS., 
bat.  I,  quinc.  i,  dial.  36. 


DEATH  OF  ALONSO  DE  AG  VILA  R. 


435 


or 


t   se- 


The  Moors,  in  the  mean  while,  finding  themselves 
no  longer  pursued,  were  aware  of  the  occupation  of 
the  Christians,  whom  they  not  improbably  had  pur- 
posely decoyed  into  the  snare.  They  resolved  to  re- 
turn to  the  scene  of  action  and  surprise  their  incautious 
enemy.  Stealthily  advancing,  therefore,  under  the 
shadows  of  night,  now  falling  thick  around,  they 
poured  through  the  rocky  defiles  of  the  enclosure  upon 
the  astonished  Spaniards.  An  unlucky  explosion,  at 
this  crisis,  of  a  cask  of  powder,  into  which  a  spark  had 
accidentally  fallen,  threw  a  broad  glare  over  the  scene, 
and  revealed  for  a  moment  the  situation  of  the  hostile 
parties; — the  Spaniards  in  the  utmost  disorder,  many 
of  them  without  arms,  and  staggering  under  the  weight 
of  their  fatal  booty ;  while  their  enemies  were  seen 
gliding  like  so  many  demons  of  darkness  through  every 
crevice  and  avenue  of  the  enclosure,  in  the  act  of 
springing  on  their  devoted  victims.  This  appalling 
spectacle,  vanishing  almost  as  soon  as  seen,  and  fol- 
lowed by  the  hideous  yells  and  war-cries  of  the  assail- 
ants, struck  a  panic  into  the  hearts  of  the  soldiers,  who 
fled,  scarcely  offering  any  resistance.  The  darkness  of 
the  night  was  as  favorable  to  the  Moors,  familiar  with 
all  the  intricacies  of  the  ground,  as  it  was  fatal  to  the 
Christians,  who,  bewildered  in  the  mazes  of  the  sierra, 
and  losing  their  footing  at  every  step,  fell  under  the 
swords  of  their  pursuers,  or  went  down  the  dark  gulfs 
and  precipices  which  yawned  all  around. '^ 

Amidst  this  dreadful  confusion,  the  count  of  Urefia 

'S  Abarca,  Reyes  de  Aragon,  torn.  ii.  fol.  340. — Zurita,  Anales,  torn. 
V.  lib.  4,  cap.  j3.--Garil)ay,  Compendio,  torn.  ii.  lib.  19,  cap.  10. — 
Bernaldez,  Reyes  Catolicos,  MS.,  cap.  165. —  Marmol,  Robelion  de 
los  Moriscos,  lib.  i,  cap.  28. 


m 


436 


mS/NG  IN  THE  ALPUJARRAS. 


succeeded  in  gaining  a  lower  level  of  the  sierra,  where 
he  halted  and  endeavored  to  rally  his  panic-struck  fol- 
lowers. His  noble  comrade,  Alonso  de  Aguilar,  still 
maintained  his  position  on  the  heights  above,  refusing 
all  entreaties  of  his  followers  to  attempt  a  retreat. 
•'  When,"  said  he,  proudly,  '*  was  the  banner  of  Agui- 
lar ever  known  to  fly  from  the  field  ?"  His  eldest  son, 
the  heir  of  his  house  and  honors,  Don  Pedro  de  Cor- 
dova, a  youth  of  great  promise,  fought  at  his  side.  He 
had  received  a  severe  wound  or^  the  head  from  a  stone, 
and  a  javelin  had  pierced  quite  through  his  leg.  With 
one  knee  resting  on  the  ground,  however,  he  still  made 
a  brave  defence  with  his  sword.  The  sight  was  too 
much  for  the  father,  and  he  implored  him  to  suffer 
himself  to  be  removed  from  the  field.  **  Let  not  the 
hopes  of  our  house  be  crushed  at  a  single  blow,"  said 
he ;  *'  go,  my  son,  live  as  becomes  a  Christian  knight, 
— live,  and  cherish  your  desolate  mother."  All  his 
entreaties  were  fruitles;,  however ;  and  the  gallant  boy 
refused  to  leave  his  father's  side,  till  he  was  forcibly 
borne  away  by  the  attendants,  who  fortunately  suc- 
ceeded in  bringing  him  in  safety  to  the  station  occupied 
by  the  count  of  Urefia.'* 

Meantime  the  brave  little  band  of  cavaliers,  who 
remained  true  to  Aguilar,  had  fallen  one  after  another; 
and  the  chief,  left  almost  alone,  retreated  to  a  huge 
rock  which  rose   in   the  middle  of  the  plain,  and, 

««  Mendoza,  Guerra  de  Granada,  p.  13. — Abarca,  Reyes  de  Aragon, 
torn.  2,  fol.  340. — Marmol,  Rebelion  de  los  Moriscos,  lib.  i,  cap.  28. — 
Oviedo,  Quincuagenas,  MS.,  bat.  i,  quinc.  i,  dial.  36. — The  boy,  who 
lived  to  man's  estate,  was  afterwards  created  marquis  of  Priego  by 
the  Catholic  sovereigns.  Salazar  de  Mendoza,  Dignidades,  lib.  2 
cap-  13-  ■:,    V,  ,      ,,^-.,, 


DEATH  OF  ALONSO  DE  AGUII.AR. 


437 


placing  his  back  against  it,  still  made  fight,  though 
weakened  by  loss  of  blood,  like  a  lion  at  bay,  against 
his  enemies.''  In  this  situation  he  was  pressed  so  hard 
by  a  Moor  of  uncommon  size  and  strength  that  he  was 
compelled  to  turn  and  close  with  him  in  single  combat. 
The  strife  was  long  and  desperate,  till  Don  Alonso, 
whose  corselet  had  become  unlaced  in  t' "  previous 
struggle,  having  received  a  severe  wound  '  o>  breast, 
followed  by  another  on  the  head,  grappled  closely  with 
his  adversary,  and  they  came  rolling  on  the  ground 
together.  The  Moor  remained  uppermost;  but  the 
spirit  of  the  Spanish  cavalier  had  not  sunk  with  his 
strength,  and  he  proudly  exclaimed,  as  if  to  intimidate 
his  enemy,  "  I  am  Don  Alonso  de  Aguilar ;"  to  which 
the  other  rejoined,  "And  I  am  the  Feri  de  Ben  Este- 
par,"  a  well-known  name  of  terror  to  the  Christians. 
The  sound  of  this  detested  name  roused  all  the  ven- 
geance of  the  dying  hero;  and,  grasping  his  foe  in 
mortal  agony,  he  rallied  his  strength  for  a  final  blow; 
but  it  was  too  late, — his  hand  failed,  and  he  was  soon 
despatched  by  the  dagger  of  his  more  vigorous  rival. 
(March  i8th,  1501.)'^ 


i 


>7  It  is  the  simile  of  the  fine  old  ballad: 

"Solo  queda  Don  Alonso 
Su  campafia  es  acabada 
Pelea  conio  un  Leon 
Pero  poco  aprovechaba." 

*'  Bemaldez,  Reyes  Catolicos,  MS.,  ubi  supra. — Abarca,  Reyes  de 
Aragon,  torn,  ii.  ubi  supra. — Garibay,  Compendio,  torn.  ii.  lib.  19,  cap. 
10. — Mendoza,  Guerra  de  Granada,  p.  13.— Sandoval,  Hist,  del  Emp. 
Carlos  v.,  torn.  i.  p.  5. — According  to  Hita's  prose,  Aguilar  had  first 
despatched  more  than  thirty  Moors  with  his  own  hand.   (Guerras  de 


]    •! 


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^ 


438 


XISING  IN  THE  ALPUJARRAS. 


Thus  fell  Alonso  Hernandez  de  Cordova,  or  Alonso 
de  Aguilar,  as  he  is  commonly  called  from  the  land 
where  his  family  estates  lay.^  **  He  was  of  the  greatest 
authority  among  the  grandees  of  his  time,"  says  Father 
Abarca,  **  for  his  lineage,  personal  character,  large 
domains,  and  the  high  posts  which  he  filled,  both  in 
peace  and  war.  More  than  forty  years  of  his  life  he 
served  against  the  infidel,  under  the  banner  of  his  house 
in  boyhood,  and  .as  leader  of  that  same  banner  in  later 
life,  or  as  viceroy  of  Andalusia  and  commander  of  the 
royal  armies.     He  was  the  fifth  lord  of  his  warlike  and 

Granada,  part  i.  p.  568.)    The  ballad,  with  more  discretion,  does  not 
vouch  for  any  particular  number. 

"  Don  Alonso  en  este  tiempo 
Muy  gran  batalla  hacia. 
El  cavallo  le  havian  muerto, 
For  muralla  le  tenia. 

Y  arrimado  i  un  gran  pefion 
Con  valor  se  defendia: 
Muchos  Mores  tiene  muertos, 
Pero  poco  le  valia. 

Porque  sobre  el  cargan  muchos, 

Y  le  dan  graiides  heridaa, 
Tantas  que  cay6  alii  muerto 
Entre  la  gente  enemiga." 

The  warrior's  death  is  summed  up  with  an  artless  brevi^,  that  would 
be  affectation  in  more  studied  composition : 

"  Muerto  queda  Don  Alonso, 

Y  eterna  &nia  ganada." 

*9  Paolo  Giovio  finds  an  etymology  for  the  name  in  the  eagle  {aguila), 
assumed  as  the  device  of  the  warlike  ancestors  of  Don  Alonso.  St. 
Ferdinand  of  Castile,  in  consideration  of  the  services  of  this  illustrious 
house  at  the  taking  of  Cordova,  in  1236,  allowed  it  to  bear  as  a  cog- 
nomen the  name  of  that  city.  This  branch,  however,  still  continued 
to  be  distinguished  by  their  territorial  epithet  of  Aguilar ;  although 
Don  Alonso's  brother,  the  Great  Captain,  as  we  have  seen,  was  more 
generally  known  by  that  of  Cordova.    Vita  Magni  Gonsalvi,  fol.  204. 


ffi! 


DEATH  OF  ALONSO  DE  AGUILAR. 


439 


pious  house  who  had  fallen  fighting  for  their  country 
and  religion  against  the  accursed  sect  of  Mahomet. 
And  there  is  good  reason  to  believe,"  continues  the 
same  orthodox  authority,  "that  his  soul  has  received 
the  glorious  reward  of  the  Christian  soldier;  since 
he  was  armed  on  that  very  morning  with  the  blessed 
sacraments  of  confession  and  communion."  * 

The  victorious  Moors,  all  this  time,  were  driving 
the  unresisting  Spaniards,  like  so  many  terrified  deer, 
down  the  dark  steeps  of  the  sierra.  The  count  of 
Urefia,  who  had  seen  his  son  stretched  by  his  side, 
and  received  a  severe  wound  himself,  made  the  most 
desperate  efforts  to  rally  the  fugitives,  but  was  at  length 
swept  away  by  the  torrent.  Trusting  himself  to  a 
faithful  adalid,  who  knew  the  passes,  he  succeeded 
with  much  difficulty  in  reaching  the  foot  of  the  moun- 
tain, with  such  a  small  remnant  of  his  followers  as 
could  keep  in  his  track."    Fortunately,  he  there  found 

«>  Reyes  de  Aragon,  torn.  ii.  fol.  340,  341. — The  hero's  body,  left  on 
the  field  of  battle,  was  treated  with  decent  respect  by  the  Moors,  who 
restored  it  to  King  Ferdinand;  and  the  sovereigns  caused  it  to  be 
interred  with  all  suitable  pomp  in  the  church  of  St.  Hypolito  at  Cor- 
dova. Many  years  afterwards  the  marchioness  of  Priego,  his  descend- 
ant, had  the  tomb  opened ;  and,  on  examining  the  mouldering  remains, 
the  iron  head  of  a  lance,  received  in  his  last  mortal  struggle,  was  found 
buried  in  the  bones.    Bleda,  Cor6nica,  lib.  5,  cap.  26. 

"  "Tambien  el  Conde  de  Urefia, 
Mai  herido  en  demasia, 
Se  sale  de  la  batalla 
Llevado  por  una  guia. 

"  Que  sabia  bien  la  senda 
Que  de  la  Sierra  salia : 
Murhos  Miros  dexaba  muertcs 
Por  su  grande  valentia. 


I 


440 


RISING  IN  THE  ALPUJARRAS. 


the  count  of  Cifuentes,  who  had  crossed  the  river  with 
the  rear-guard  and  encamped  on  a  rising  ground  in  the 
neighborhood.  Under  favor  of  this  strong  position, 
the  latter  commander  and  his  brave  Sevillians,  all  fresh 
for  action,  were  enabled  to  cover  the  shattered  remains 
of  the  Spaniards,  and  beat  off  the  assaults  of  their 
enemies  till  the  break  of  morn,  when  they  vanished, 
like  so  many  foul  birds  of  night,  into  the  recesses  of 
the  mountains. 

The  rising  day,  which  dispersed  their  foes,  now 
revealed  to  the  Christians  the  dreadful  extent  of  their 
own  losses.  Few  were  to  be  seen  of  all  that  proud 
array  which  had  marched  up  the  heights  so  confidently 
under  the  banners  of  their  ill-fated  chiefs  the  preceding 
evening.  The  bloody  roll  of  slaughter,  besides  the 
common  file,  was  graced  with  the  names  of  the  best 
and  bravest  of  the  Christian  knighthood.  Among  the 
number  was  Francisco  Ramirez  de  Madrid,  tne  distin- 
guished engineer,  who  had  contributed  so  essentially 
to  the  success  of  the  Granadine  war." 

The  sad  tidings  of  the  defeat  soon  spread  throughout 
the  country,  occasioning  a  sensation  such  as  had  not 
been  felt  since  the  tragic  affair  of  the  Axarquia.  Men 
could  scarcely  credit   that  so   much  mischief  could 

"Tambien  algunos  se  escapan, 
Que  al  buen  Conde  le  seguian." 

Oviedo,  speaking  of  this  retreat  of  the  good  count  and  his  followers, 
says,  "  Volvieron  las  riendas  a  sus  caballos,  y  se  retiraron  a  mas  que 
galope  por  la  multitud  de  los  Iniieles."  Quincuagenas,  MS.,  bat.  i, 
quinc.  i,  dial.  36. 

«  Zuftiga,  Annales  de  Sevilla,  ano  1501. — Carbajal,  Anales,  MS., 
aiio  1501. — Bleda,  Coronica,  lib.  5,  cap.  26. — Oviedo,  Quincuagenas, 
MS.,  bat.  I,  quinc.  i,  dial.  36. — For  a  more  particular  notice  of  Ra- 
mirez, see  Fait  I.  chapter  13,  of  this  Hisloiy. 


DEATH  OF  ALONSO  DE  AGUILAR. 


441 


be  inflicted  by  an  outcast  race,  who,  whatever  terror 
they  once  inspired,  had  long  been  regarded  with  in- 
difference or  -contempt.  Every  Spaniard  seemed  to 
consider  himself  in  some  way  or  other  involved  in  the 
disgrace;  and  the  most  spirited  exertions  were  made 
on  all  sides  to  retrieve  it.  By  the  beginning  of  April, 
King  Ferdinand  found  himself  at  Ronda,  at  the  head 
of  a  strong  body  of  troops,  which  he  determined  to 
lead  in  person,  notwithstanding  the  remonstrances  of 
his  courtiers,  into  the  heart  of  the  Sierra,  and  take 
bloody  vengeance  on  the  rebels. 

These  latter,  however,  far  from  being  encouraged, 
were  appalled  by  the  extent  of  their  own  success ;  and, 
as  the  note  of  warlike  preparation  reached  them  in 
their  fastnesses,  they  felt  their  temerity  in  thus  bringing 
the  whole  weight  of  the  Castilian  monarchy  on  their 
heads.  They  accordingly  abandoned  all  thoughts  of 
further  resistance,  and  lost  no  time  in  sending  deputies 
to  the  king's  camp,  to  deprecate  his  anger  and  sue 
in  the  most  submissive  terms  for  pardon. 

Ferdinand,  though  far  from  vindictive,  was  less  open 
to  pity  than  the  queen ;  and  in  the  present  instance 
he  indulged  in  a  full  measure  of  the  indignation  with 
which  sovereigns,  naturally  identifying  themselves  with 
the  state,  are  wont  to  regard  rebellion,  by  viewing  it 
in  the  aggravated  light  of  a  personal  oflFence.  After 
some  hesitation,  however,  his  prudence  got  the  bettei 
of  his  passions,  as  he  reflected  that  he  was  in  a  situation 
to  dictate  the  terms  of  victory  without  paying  the  usual 
price  for  it.  His  past  experience  seems  to  have  con- 
vinced him  of  the  hopelessness  of  infusing  sentiments 
of  loyalty  in  a  Mussulman  towards  a  Christian  prince ; 


,1  J 


m 
W 


\{,\  1 


I 


44a 


RISING  IN  THE  ALPUJARRAS. 


for,  while  he  granted  a  general  amnesty  to  those  con- 
cerned in  the  insurrection,  it  was  only  on  the  alterna^ 
tive  of  baptism  or  exile,  engaging  at  the  same  time  to 
provide  conveyance  for  such  as  chose  to  leave  the 
country,  on  the  payment  of  ten  doblas  of  gold  a 
head.'' 

These  engagements  were  punctually  fulfilled.  The 
Moorish  emigrants  were  transported  in  public  galleys 
from  Estepona  to  the  Barbary  coast.  The  number, 
however,  was  probably  small ;  by  far  the  greater  part 
being  obliged,  however  reluctantly,  from  want  of  funds, 
to  remain  and  be  baptized.  **  They  would  never  have 
stayed,"  says  Bleda,  ''  if  they  could  have  mustered  the 
ten  doblas  of  gold;  a  circumstance,"  continues  that 
charitable  writer,  **  which  shows  with  what  levity  they 
received  baptism,  and  for  what  paltry  considerations 
they  could  be  guilty  of  such  sacrilegious  hypocrisy!"  "♦ 
But,  although  every  spark  of  insurrection  was  thus 
effectually  extinguished,  it  was  long,  very  long,  before 
the  Spanish  nation  could  recover  from  the  blow,  or 
forget  the  sad  story  of  its  disaster  in  the  Red  Sierra. 
It  became  the  theme  not  only  of  chronicle,  but  of 
song ;  the  note  of  sorrow  was  prolonged  in  many  a 
plaintive  romance,  and  the  names  of  Aguilar  and  his 
unfortunate  companions  were  embalmed  in  that  beau- 
ts Bleda,  Cor6nica,  lib.  5,  cap.  a6,  27. — Robles,  Vida  de  Ximcnei, 
cap.  16. — Bernaldez,  Reyes  Cat61icos,  MS.,  cap.  165. — Mariana,  Hist, 
de  Espafta,  lib.  27,  cap.  5. — Marmol,  Rebelion  de  los  Moriscos,  lib.  i, 
cap.  28. 

"4  Cor6nica,  lib.  5,  cap.  27. — The  Curate  of  Los  Palacios  disposes  of 
the  Moors  rather  summarily :  "  The  Christians  stripped  them,  gave 
them  a  free  passage,  and  sent  tliem  to  tlie  devil  i"  Reyes  Cat6Iicos, 
cap.  165. 


DEATH  OF  ALONSO  DE  AGUILAR. 


443 


tiful  minstrelsy,  scarcely  less  imperishable,  and  far  more 
touching,  than  the  stately  and  elaborate  records  of  his- 
tory.** The  popular  feeling  was  displayed  after  another 
fashion  in  regard  to  the  count  of  Urefla  and  his  fol- 

"S  According  to  one  of  the  romances,  cited  by  Hita,  the  expedition 
of  Aguilar  was  a  piece  of  romantic  Quixotism,  occasioned  by  King 
Ferdinand's  challenging  the  bravest  of  his  knights  to  plant  his  banner 
on  the  summits  of  the  Alpujarras : 

"Qual  de  vosotros,  amigos, 
Ira  k  la  Sierra  maQaiia, 
A  poner  mi  Real  pendon 
Encima  de  la  Alpuxarra?" 

All  shrunk  from  the  perilous  emprise,  till  Alonso  de  Aguilar  stepped 
forward  and  boldly  assumed  it  for  himself: 

"  A  todos  tiembla  la  barba, 
Sino  fuera  don  Alonso, 
Que  de  Aguilar  se  llamaba. 
Levant6se  en  pie  ante  el  Rey 
De  esta  manera  le  liabla. 

"  Aquesa  empresa,  SeSor, 
Para  mi  estaba  guardada, 
Que  mi  seAora  la  reyna 
Ya  me  la  tieue  mandada. 

"  Alegr6se  mucho  el  Rey 
For  la  oferta  que  le  daba, 
Aun  no  era  amanecido 
Don  Alonso  ya  cavalga." 

These  popular  ditties,  it  cannot  be  denied,  are  slippery  authorities  for 
any  important  fact,  unless  supported  by  more  direct  historic  testimony. 
When  composed,  however,  by  contemporaries,  or  those  who  lived  near 
the  time,  they  may  very  naturally  record  many  true  details,  too  insig- 
nificant in  their  concf^quences  to  attract  the  notice  of  history.  The 
ballad  translated  with  so  much  elaborate  simplicity  by  Percy  is  chiefly 
taken  up,  as  the  English  reader  may  remember,  with  the  exploits  of  a 
Sevillian  hero  named  Saavedra.  No  such  personage  is  noticed,  as  far 
as  I  am  aware,  by  the  Spanish  Chroniclers.  The  name  of  Saavedra, 
however,  appears  to  have  been  a  familiar  one  in  Seville,  and  occurs 
two  or  three  times  in  the  muster-roll  of  nobles  and  cavaliers  of  that 
city  who  joined  King  Ferdinand's  army  in  the  preceding  year,  1500. 
Zuniga,  Annales  de  Sevilla,  eodem  anno. 


■iil'lii 


JRISING  IN  THE  ALPUJARRAS. 


lowers,  who  were  accused  of  deserting  their  posts  in 
the  hour  of  peril ;  and  more  than  one  ballad  of  the 
time  reproachfully  demanded  an  account  from  him  of 
the  brave  companions-in-arms  whom  he  had  left  in  the 
Sierra." 

The  imputation  on  this  gallant  nobleman  appears 
wholly  undeserved ;  for  certainly  he  was  not  called  on 
to  throw  away  his  own  life  and  those  of  his  brave  fol- 
lowers, in  a  cause  perfectly  desperate,  for  a  chimerical 
point  of  honor.  And,  so  far  from  forfeiting  the  favor 
of  his  sovereigns  by  his  conduct  on  this  occasion,  he 
was  maintained  by  them  in  the  same  high  stations 
which  he  before  held,  and  which  he  continued  to  fill 
with  dignity  to  a  good  old  age.'' 

It  was  about  seventy  years  after  this  event,  in  1570, 
that  the  duke  of  Arcos,  descended  from  the  great  mar- 
quis of  Cadiz  and  from  this  same  count  of  Urefta,  led 
an  expedition  into  the  Sierra  Vermeja,  in  order  to 
suppress  a  similar  insurrection  of  the  Moriscos.  Among 
the  party  were  many  of  the  descendants  and  kinsmen 
of  those  who  had  fought  under  Aguilar.  It  was  the 
first  time  since,  that  these  rude  passes  had  been  trodden 
by  Christian  feet ;  but  the  traditions  of  early  childhood 

*  Mendoza  notices  these  splenetic  effusions  (Guerra  de  Granada,  p. 
13) ;  and  Bleda  (Cor6nica,  p.  636)  cites  the  following  couplet  from 

one  of  them : 

"  Decid,  conde  de  Urefia, 
Don  Alonso  donde  queda." 

"7  The  Venetian  ambassador,  Navagiero,  saw  the  count  of  Urena  at 
Ossuna  in  1526.  He  was  enjoying  a  green  old  age,  or,  as  the  minis- 
ter expresses  it,  "  molto  vecchio  e  gentil  corteggiano  per6."  "  Diseases," 
said  the  veteran,  good-humoredly,  "  sometimes  visit  me,  but  seldom 
tarry  long ;  for  my  body  is  like  a  crazy  old  inn,  where  travellers  find 
such  poor  fare  that  they  merely  touch  and  go,"    Viaggio,  fol.  17. 


DEATH  OF  ALONSO  DE  AGUILAR. 


445 


had  made  every  inch  of  ground  familiar  to  the  soldiers. 
Some  way  up  the  eminence,  they  recognized  the  point 
at  which  the  count  of  Urefla  had  made  his  stand ;  and 
farther  still,  the  fatal  plain,  belted  round  with  its  dark 
rampart  of  rocks,  where  the  strife  had  been  hottest. 
Scattered  fragments  of  arms  and  harness  still  lay  rust- 
ing on  the  ground,  which  was  covered  with  the  bones 
of  the  warriors,  that  had  lain  for  more  than  half  a  cen- 
tury unburied  and  bleaching  in  the  sun.''  Here  was 
the  spot  on  which  the  brave  son  of  Aguilar  had  fought 
so  sturdily  by  his  father's  side;  and  there  the  huge 
rock  at  whose  foot  the  chieftain  had  fallen,  throwing 
its  dark  shadow  over  the  remains  of  the  noble  dead  who 
lay  sleeping  around.  The  strongly-marked  features  of 
the  ground  called  up  all  the  circumstances,  which  the 
soldiers  had  gathered  from  tradition ;  their  hearts  beat 
high,  as  they  recapitulated  them  one  to  another ;  and 
the  tears,  says  the  eloquent  historian  who  tells  the 
story,  fell  fast  down  their  iron  cheeks,  as  they  gazed 
on  the  sad  relics  and  offered  up  a  soldier's  prayer  for 
the  heroic  souls  which  once  animated  them."^ 


*  Guerra  de  Granada,  p.  301. — Compare  the  similar  painting  of 
Tacitus,  in  the  scene  where  Germanicus  pays  the  last  sad  offices  to  the 
remains  of  Varus  and  his  legions :  "  Dein  semiruto  vallo,  humili  fossa, 
accisae  jam  reliquiae  consedisse  intelligebantur :  medio  campi  albentia 
ossa,  ut  fugerant,  ut  restiterant,  disjecta  vel  aggerata ;  adjacebant  frag- 
mina  telorum,  equorumque  artus,  simul  truncis  arborum  antefixa  ora." 
(Annates,  lib.  i,  sect.  61.)  Mendoza  falls  nothing  short  of  this  cele- 
brated description  of  the  Roman  historian : 

"  Pan  etiam  Arcadii  dicat  se  judice  victum." 

a?  Mendoza,  Guerra  de  Granada,  pp.  300-302. — The  Moorish  insur- 
rection of  1570  was  attended  with  at  least  one  good  result,  in  calling 
forth  this  historic  masterpiece,  the  work  of  the  accomplished  Diego 


446 


RISING  IN  THE  ALPUJARRAS. 


Tranquillity  was  now  restored  throughout  the  wide 
borders  of  Granada.  The  banner  of  the  Cross  floated 
triumphantly  over  the  whole  extent  of  its  wild  sierras, 
its  broad  valleys,  and  populous  cities.  Every  Moor, 
in  exterior  at  least,  had  become  a  Christian.  Every 
mosque  had  been  converted  into  a  Christian  church. 
Still  the  country  was  not  entirely  purified  from  the 
stain  of  Islamism,  since  many  professing  their  ancient 
faith  were  scattered  over  different  parts  of  the  kingdom 
of  Castile,  where  they  had  been  long  resident  before 
the  surrender  of  their  capital.  The  late  events  seemed 
to  have  no  other  effect  than  to  harden  them  in  error ; 
and  the  Spanish  government  saw  with  alarm  the  per- 
nicious influence  of  their  example  and  persuasion,  in 
shaking  the  infirm  faith  of  the  new  converts. 

To  obviate  this,  an  ordinance  was  published,  in  the 
summer  of  1501,  prohibiting  all  intercourse  between 
these  Moors  and  the  orthodpx  kingdom  of  Granada.*' 
At  length,  however,  convinced  that  there  was  no  other 
way  to  save  the  precious  seed  from  being  choked  by 
the  thorns  of  infidelity  than  to  eradicate  them  alto- 
gether, the  sovereigns  came  to  the  extraordinary  reso- 
lution of  offering  them  the  alternative  of  baptism  or 
exile.  They  issued  a  pragm&tica  to  that  effect  from 
Seville,  February  12th,  1502.  After  a  preamble,  duly 
setting  forth  the  obligations  of  gratitude  on  the  Cas- 

Hurtado  de  Mendoza,  accomplished  alike  as  a  statesman,  warrior,  and 
historian.  His  "  Guerra  de  Granada,"  confined  as  it  is  to  a  barren 
fragment  of  Moorish  history,  displays  such  liberal  sentiments  (too  lib- 
eral, indeed,  to  permit  its  publication  till  long  after  its  author's  death), 
profound  reflection,  and  classic  elegance  of  style,  as  well  entide  him  to 
the  appellation  of  the  Spanish  Sallust. 
*>  Pragrodticas  del  Reyno,  fol.  6. 


Ill 


DEATH  OF  ALONSO  DE  AGUILAR. 


447 


.as- 


tilians  to  drive  God's  enemies  from  the  land  which  he 
in  his  good  time  had  delivered  into  their  hands,  and 
the  numerous  backslidings  occasioned  among  the  new 
converts  by  their  intercourse  with  their  unbaptized 
brethren,  the  act  goes  on  to  state,  in  much  the  same 
terms  with  the  famous  ordinance  against  the  Jews,  that 
ail  the  unbaptized  Moors  in  the  kingdoms  of  Castile 
and  Leon,  above  fourteen  years  of  age  if  males,  and 
twelve  if  females,  must  leave  the  country  by  the  end 
of  April  following ;  that  they  might  sell  their  property 
in  the  mean  time,  and  take  the  proceeds  in  anything 
save  gold  and  silver  and  merchandise  regularly  pro- 
hibited ;  and,  finally,  that  they  might  emigrate  to  any 
foreign  country,  except  the  dominions  of  the  Grand 
Turk,  and  such  parts  of  Africa  as  Spain  was  then  at 
war  with.  Obedience  to  these  severe  provisions  was 
enforced  by  the  penalties  of  death  and  confiscation  of 
property.  3* 

This  stem  edict,  so  closely  modelled  on  that  against 
the  Jews,  must  have  been  even  more  grievous  in  its 
application,**  For  the  Jews  may  be  said  to  have  been 
denizens  almost  equally  of  every  country;  while  the 
Moors,  excluded  from  a  retreat  among  their  country- 
men on  the  African  shore,  were  sent  into  the  lands  of 
enemies  or  strangers.  The  former,  moreover,  were  far 
better  qualified  by  their  natural  shrewdness  and  com- 

s«  Pragmdticas  del  Reyno,  fol.  7. 

3*  Bleda  anxiously  claims  the  credit  of  the  act  of  expulsion  for  Fray 
Thomas  de  Torquemada,  of  inquisitorial  memory.  (Cor6nica,  p. 
640.)  That  eminent  personage  had,  indeed,  been  dead  some  years; 
but  this  edict  was  so  obviously  suggested  by  that  against  the  Jews, 
that  it  may  be  considered  as  the  result  of  his  principles,  if  not  directly 
taught  by  him.     Thus  it  is,  "  the  evil  that  men  do  lives  after  them." 


448 


HJSING  IN  THE  ALPUJARRAS. 


mercial  habits  for  disposing  of  their  property  advan- 
tageously, than  the  simple,  inexperienced  Moors,  skilled 
in  little  else  than  husbandry  or  rude  mechanic  artb. 
We  have  nowhere  met  with  any  estimate  of  the  number 
who  migrated  on  this  occasion.  The  Castilian  writers 
pass  over  the  whole  affair  in  a  very  few  words ;  not, 
indeed,  as  is  too  evident,  from  any  feelings  of  disap- 
probation, but  from  its  insignificance  in  a  political 
view.  Their  silence  implies  a  very  inconsiderable 
number  of  emigrants ;  a  circumstance  not  to  be  won- 
dered at,  as  there  were  very  few,  probably,  who 
would  not  sooner  imitate  their  Granadine  brethren 
in  assuming  the  mask  of  Christianity,  than  encounter 
exile  under  all  the  aggravated  miseries  with  which  it 
was  accompanied. 3) 

Castile  might  now  boast,  for  the  first  time  in  eight 
centuries,  that  every  outward  stain,  at  least,  of  infi- 
delity was  purified  from  her  bosom.  But  how  had 
this  been  accomplished  ?  By  the  most  detestable  ex- 
pedients which  sophistry  could  devise  and  oppression 
execute ;  and  that,  too,  under  an  enlightened  govern- 
ment, proposing  to  be  guided  solely  by  a  conscientious 
regard  for  duty.  To  comprehend  this  more  fully, 
it  will  be  necessary  to  take  a  brief  view  of  public 
sentiment  in  matters  of  religion  at  that  time. 

It  is  a  singular  paradox,  that  Christianity,  whose 

ss  The  Castilian  writers,  especially  the  dramatic,  have  not  been 
insensible  to  the  poetical  situations  afforded  by  the  distresses  of  the 
banished  Moriscos.  Their  sympathy  for  the  exiles,  however,  is  whimsi- 
cally enough  contrasted  by  an  orthodox  anxiety  to  justify  the  conduct 
of  their  own  government.  The  reader  may  recollect  a  pertinent  ex- 
ample in  the  story  of  Sancho's  Moorish  friend,  Ricote.  Don  Quixote, 
part.  2,  cap.  54. 


DEATH  OF  ALONSO  DE  AGUILAR, 


449 


hose 


doctrines  inculcate  unbounded  charity,  should  have 
been  made  so  often  an  engine  of  persecution ;  while 
Mahometan  ism,  whose  principles  are  those  of  avowed 
intolerance,  saould  have  exhibited,  at  least  till  later 
times,  a  truly  philosophical  spirit  of  toleration.'*  Even 
the  first  victorious  disciples  of  the  prophet,  glowing 
with  all  the  fiery  zeal  of  proselytism,  were  content 
with  the  exaction  of  tribute  from  the  vanquished ;  at 
least,  more  vindictive  feelings  were  reserved  only  for 
idolaters,  who  did  not,  like  the  Jews  and  Christians, 
acknowledge  with  themselves  the  unity  of  God.  With 
these  hitter  denominations  they  had  obvious  sympathy, 
since  it  was  their  creed  which  formed  the  basis  of  their 
own.*  In  Spain,  where  the  fiery  temperament  of  the 
Arab  was  gradually  softened  under  the  influence  of  a 
temperate  climate  and  higher  mental  culture,  the  toler- 
ation of  the  Jews  and  Christians,  as  we  have  already 

34  The  spirit  of  toleration  professed  by  the  Moors,  indeed,  was  made 
a  principal  argument  against  them  in  the  archbishop  of  Valencia's 
memorial  to  Philip  III.  The  Mahometans  would  seem  the  better 
Christians  of  the  two.  See  Geddcs,  Miscellaneous  Tracts  (London, 
l7oa-6),  vol.  i.  p.  94. 

35  Heeren  seems  willing  to  countenance  the  learned  Pluquet  in  re- 
garding Islamism,  in  its  ancient  form,  as  one  of  the  modifications  of 
Christianity ;  placing  the  principal  difference  between  that  and  Socin- 
ianism,  for  example,  in  the  mere  rites  of  circumcision  and  baptism. 
(Essai  sur  I'lnfluence  des  Croisades,  traduit  par  Villers  (Paris,  1808), 
p.  17s,  not.)  "The  Mussulmans,"  says  Sir  William  Jones,  "are  a 
sort  of  heterodox  Christians,  if  Locke  reasons  justly,  because  they 
firmly  believe  the  immaculate  conception,  divine  character,  and  mira- 
cles of  the  Messiah ;  heterodox  in  denying  vehemently  his  character 
of  Son,  and  his  equality,  as  God,  with  the  Father,  of  whose  unity  and 
attributes  they  entertain  and  express  the  most  awful  ideas."  See  his 
Dissertation  on  the  Gods  of  Greece,  Italy,  and  India ;  Works  (I^indon, 
1799),  vol.  i.  p.  279. 

Vol.  II. — 29 


.! 


11 


450 


RISING  IN  THE  ALPUJARRAS. 


had  occasion  to  notice,  was  so  remarkable  that  within 
a  few  years  after  the  conquest  we  find  them  not  only 
protected  in  the  enjoyment  of  civil  and  religious  free- 
dom, but  mingling  on  terms  almost  of  equality  with 
their  conquerors. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  inquire  here  how  far  the  differ- 
ent policy  of  the  Christians  was  owing  to  the  peculiar 
constitution  of  their  hierarchy,  which,  composed  of  a 
spiritual  militia  drawn  from  every  country  in  Europe, 
was  cut  off  by  its  position  from  all  human  sympathies, 
and  attached  to  no  interests  but  its  own;  which  availed 
itself  of  the  superior  science  and  reputed  sanctity  that 
were  supposed  to  have  given  it  the  key  to  the  dread 
mysteries  of  a  future  life,  not  to  enlighten  but  to 
enslave  the  minds  of  a  credulous  world ;  and  which, 
making  its  own  tenets  the  only  standard  of  faith,  its 
own  rites  and  ceremonial  the  only  evidence  of  virtue, 
obliterated  the  great  laws  of  morality  written  by  the 
divine  hand  on  every  heart,  and  gradually  built  up  a 
system  of  exclusiveness  and  intolerance  most  repug- 
nant to  the  mild  and  charitable  religion  of  Jesus 
Christ. 

Before  the  close  of  the  fifteenth  century,  several 
circumstances  operated  to  sharpen  the  edge  of  intoler- 
ance, especially  against  the  Arabs.  The  Turks,  whose 
political  consideration  of  late  years  had  made  them 
the  peculiar  representatives  and  champions  of  Ma- 
hometanism,  had  shown  a  ferocity  and  cruelty  in  their 
treatment  of  the  Christians  which  brought  general 
odium  on  all  the  professors  of  their  faith,  and  on  the 
Moors,  of  course,  though  most  undeservedly,  in  com- 
mon with  the  rest.     The  bold,  heterodox  doctrines. 


DEATH  OF  ALONSO  DE  AGUILAR. 


45 1 


esus 

veral 
toler- 
vhose 
them 

Ma- 
their 
neral 
n  the 
com- 

ines, 


also,  which  had  occasionally  broken  forth  in  different 
parts  of  Europe  in  the  fifteenth  century,  like  so  many 
faint  streaks  of  light  ushering  in  the  glorious  morn 
of  the  Reformation,  had  roused  the  alarm  of  the 
champions  of  the  church,  and  kindled  on  more  than 
one  occasion  the  fires  of  persecution ;  and  before  the 
close  of  the  period  the  Inquisition  was  introduced  into 
Spain. 

From  that  disastrous  hour,  religion  wore  a  new  aspect 
in  this  unhappy  country.  The  spirit  of  intolerance, 
no  longer  hooded  in  the  darkness  of  the  cloister,  now 
stalked  abroad  in  all  his  terrors.  Ztil  was  exalted 
into  fanaticism,  and  a  rational  spirit  of  proselytism 
into  one  of  fiendish  persecution.  It  was  not  enough 
now,  as  formerly,  to  conform  passively  to  the  doctrines 
of  the  church,  but  it  was  enjoined  to  make  war  on  all 
who  refused  them.  The  natural  feelings  of  compunc- 
tion in  the  discharge  of  this  sad  duty  was  a  crime ; 
and  the  tear  of  sympathy,  wrung  out  by  the  sight  of 
mortal  agonies,  was  an  offence  to  be  expiated  by  hu- 
miliating penance.  The  most  frightful  maxims  were 
deliberately  engrafted  into  the  code  of  morals.  Any 
one,  it  was  said,  might  conscientiously  kill  an  apostate 
wherever  he  could  meet  him.  There  was  some  doubt 
whether  a  man  might  slay  his  own  father,  if  a  heretic 
or  infidel,  but  none  whatever  as  to  his  right,  in  that 
event,  to  take  away  the  life  of  his  son  or  of  his  bro- 
ther.**   These  maxims  were  not  a  dead  letter,  but  of 

s*  See  the  bishop  of  Orihuela's  treatise,  "  De  Bello  Sacro,"  etc.,  cited 
by  the  industrious  Clemencin.  (Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de  Hist.,  torn.  vi. 
Ilust.  15.)  The  Moors  and  Jews,  of  course,  stood  no  chance  in  this 
code ;  the  reverend  father  expresses  an  opinion,  with  which  Bleda 


452 


RISING  IN  THE  ALPUJARRAS. 


most  active  operation,  as  the  sad  records  of  the  dread 
tribunal  too  well  prove.  The  character  of  the  nation 
underwent  a  melancholy  change.  The  milk  of  charity, 
nay,  of  human  feeling,  was  soured  in  every  bosom. 
The  liberality  of  the  old  Spanish  cavalier  gave  way  to 
the  fiery  fanaticism  of  the  monk.  The  taste  for  blood, 
once  gratified,  begat  a  cannibal  appetite  in  the  people, 
who,  cheered  on  by  the  frantic  clergy,  seemed  to  vie 
with  one  another  in  the  eagerness  with  whigh  they  ran 
down  the  miserable  game  of  the  Inquisition. 

It  was  at  this  very  time,  when  the  infernal  monster, 
gorged  but  not  sated  with  human  sacrifice,  was  crying 
aloud  for  fresh  victims,  that  Granada  surrendered  to 
the  Spaniards,  under  the  solemn  guarantee  of  the  full 
enjoyment  of  civil  and  religious  liberty.  The  treaty  of 
capitulation  granted  too  much,  or  too  little, — too  little 
for  an  independent  state,  too  much  for  one  whose 
existence  was  now  merged  in  that  of  a  greater ;  for  it 
secured  to  the  Moors  privileges  in  some  respects  supe- 
rior to  those  of  the  Castilians,  and  to  the  prejudice  of 
the  latter.  Such,  for  example,  was  the  permission  to 
trade  with  the  Barbary  coast,  and  with  the  various 
places  in  Castile  and  Andalusia,  without  paying  the 
duties  imposed  on  the  Spaniards  themselves;''  and 
that  article,  again,  by  which  runaway  Moorish  slaves 
from  other  parts  of  the  kingdom  were  made  free  and 
incapable  of  being  reclaimed  by  their  masters,  if  they 

heartily  coincides,  that  the  government  would  be  perfectly  justified  in 
taking  away  the  life  of  every  Moor  in  the  kingdom,  for  their  shame- 
less infidelity.     Ubi  supra; — and  Bleda,  Cor6nica,  p.  995. 

37  The  articles  of  the  treaty  are  detailed  at  length  by  Marmol,  Re- 
belion  de  los  Moriscos,  lib.  z,  cap.  19. 


DEATH  OF  ALONSO  DE  AGUILAR. 


453 


could  reach  Granada.*  The  former  of  these  provisions 
struck  at  the  commercial  profits  of  the  Spaniards,  the 
latter  directly  at  their  property. 

It  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  such  a  treaty,  depend- 
ing for  its  observance  on  the  good  faith  and  forbear- 
ance of  the  stronger  party,  would  not  hold  together  a 
year  in  any  country  of  Christendom,  even  at  the  pres- 
ent day,  before  some  flaw  or  pretext  would  be  devised 
to  evade  it.  How  much  greater  was  the  probability 
of  this  in  the  present  case,  where  the  weaker  party 
was  viewed  with  all  the  accumulated  odium  of  long 
hereditary  hostility  and  religious  rancor ! 

The  work  of  conversion,  on  which  the  Christians, 
no  doubt,  much  relied,  was  attended  with  greater  diffi- 
culties than  had  been  anticipated  by  the  conquerors. 
It  was  now  found  that,  while  the  Moors  retained  their 
present  faith,  they  would  be  much  better  affected 
towards  their  countrymen  in  Africa  than  to  the  nation 
with  which  they  were  incorporated.  In  short,  Spain 
still  had  enemies  in  her  bosom ;  and  reports  were  rife, 
in  every  quarter,  of  their  secret  intelligence  with  the 
Barbary  states,  and  of  Christians  kidnapped  to  be  sold 
as  slaves  to  Algerine  corsairs.  Such  tales,  greedily 
circulated  and  swallowed,  soon  begat  general  alarm ; 
and  men  are  not  apt  to  be  over-scrupulous  as  to  meas- 
ures which  they  deem  essential  to  their  personal  safety. 

The  zealous  attempt  to  bring  about  conversion  by 
preaching  and  expostulation  was  fair  and  commend- 
able. The  intervention  of  bribes  and  promises,  if  it 
violated  the  spirit,  did  not,  at  least,  the  letter  of  the 
treaty.     Tl^e  application  of  force  to  a  few  of  the  most 

^  Marmol,  Rebelion  de  los  Moriscos,  lib.  i,  cap.  19. 


454 


JilSIXG  IN  THE  ALPUJARRAS. 


refractory,  who  by  their  blind  obstinacy  were  excluding 
a  whole  nation  from  the  benefits  of  redemption,  was  to 
be  defended  on  other  grounds;  and  these  were  not 
wanting  to  cunning  theologians,  who  considered  that 
the  sanctity  of  the  end  justified  extraordinary  means, 
and  that  where  the  eternal  interests  of  the  soul  were 
at  stake  the  force  of  promises  and  the  faith  of  treaties 
were  equally  nugatory.* 

But  the  chef-d'' (Euvre  of  monkish  casuistry  was  the 
argument  imputed  to  Ximenes  for  depriving  the  Moors 
of  the  benefits  of  the  treaty,  as  a  legitimate  conse- 
quence of  the  rebellion  into  which  they  had  been 
driven  by  his  own  malpractices.  This  proposition, 
however,  far  from  outraging  the  feelings  of  the  nation, 
well  drilled  by  this  time  in  the  metaphysics  of  the 
cloister,  fell  short  of  them,  if  we  are  to  judge  from 
recommendations  of  a  still  more  questionable  import, 
urged,  though  ineffectually,  on  the  sovereigns  at  this 
very  time,  from  the  highest  quarter.^" 

39  See  the  arguments  of  Ximenes,  or  of  his  enthusiastic  biographer 
Fl^chier,  for  it  is  not  always  easy  to  discriminate  between  them.  Hist, 
de  Ximenes,  pp.  io8,  109. — Montesquieu,  in  those  admirable  Letters 
which  disguise  so  much  deep  philosophy  under  the  pleasant  veil  of 
raillery,  makes  a  stricture  on  this  compulsory  proselytism  worth  all  the 
arguments  of  its  advocates :  "  Celui  qui  veut  me  faire  changer  de  re- 
ligion ne  le  fait  sans  doute  que  parce  qu'il  ne  changeroit  la  sienne, 
quand  on  voudroit  I'y  forcer ;  il  trouve  done  etrange  que  je  ne  fasse 
pas  une  chose  qu'il  ne  feroit  pas  lui-meme,  peut-etre,  pour  I'empire  du 
monde."  .  Lettres  Persanes,  let.  85. 

♦>  The  duke  of  Medina  Sidonia  proposed  to  Ferdinand  and  Isabella 
to  be  avenged  on  the  Moors,  in  some  way  not  explained,  after  their 
disembarkation  in  Africa,  on  the  ground  that,  the  term  of  the  royal 
safe-conduct  having  elapsed,  they  might  lawfully  be  treatei"  >  enemies. 
To  this  proposal,  which  would  have  done  honor  to  a  college  of  Jesuits 
in  the  sixteenth  century,  the  sovereigns  made  a  reply  too  creditable 


DEATH  OF  ALONSO  DE  AGUILAR. 


455 


abella 
their 
royal 

:mies. 

esuits 

itable 


Such  are  the  frightful  results  to  which  the  fairest 
mind  may  be  led,  when  it  introduces  the  refinements 
of  logic  into  the  discussions  of  duty ;  when,  proposing 
to  achieve  some  great  good,  whether  in  politics  or 
religion,  it  conceives  that  the  importance  of  the  object 
authorizes  a  departure*  from  the  plain  principles  of 
morality  which  regulate  the  ordinary  affairs  of  life ; 
and  when,  blending  these  higher  interests  with  those 
of  a  personal  nature,  it  becomes  incapable  of  discrimi- 
nating between  them,  and  is  led  insensibly  to  act  from 
selfish  motives,  while  it  fondly  imagines  itself  obeying 
only  the  conscientious  dictates  of  duty.^' 

not  to  be  transcribed.  "  El  Rei  i  la  Reina.  Fernando  de  Zafra, 
nuestro  secretdrio.  Vinios  vuestra  letra,  en  que  nos  fecistes  saber  lo 
que  el  duque  de  Medinasiddnia  tenia  pensado  que  se  podia  facer 
contra  los  Moros  de  Villaluenga  despu^s  de  desembarcados  allende. 
Decidle  que  le  agradecemos  y  tenemos  en  servfcio  el  buen  deseo  que 
tiene  de  nos  servir:  pero  porqui  nuestra  palabra  y  seguro  real  asi  se 
debe  guardar  d  los  infieles  como  d  los  Cristianos,  y  iacicndose  lo  que 
i\  dice  pareceria  cautela  y  engaflo  armado  sobre  nuestro  seguro  para 
no  le  guardar,  que  en  ninguna  manera  se  haga  eso,  ni  otra  cosa  de 
que  pueda  parecer  que  se  quebranta  nuestro  seguro.  De  Granada 
viinte  y  nueve  de  mayo  de  quinientos  y  un  afios. — Yo  el  Rei. — Yo  la 
R^ina. — Por  mandado  del  Rei  €  del  Reina,  Miguel  Perez  Almazan.' 
(Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de  Hist.,  torn.  vi.  Ilust.  15,  from  the  original  in  the 
archives  of  the  family  of  Medina  Sidonia.)  Would  that  the  sugges- 
tions of  Isabella's  own  heart,  instead  of  the  clergy,  had  always  been 
the  guide  of  her  conduct  in  these  matters ! 

41  A  memorial  of  the  archbishop  of  Valencia  to  Philip  III.  affords 
an  example  of  this  moral  obliquity,  that  may  make  one  laugh,  or  weep, 
according  to  the  temper  of  his  philosophy.  In  this  precious  document 
he  says,  "  Your  Majesty  may,  without  any  scruple  of  conscience,  malce 
slaves  of  all  the  Moriscos,  and  may  put  them  into  your  own  galleys 
or  mines,  or  sell  them  to  strangers.  And  as  to  their  children,  they 
may  be  all  sold  at  good  rates  here  in  Spain ;  which  will  be  so  far  from 
being  a  punishment,  that  it  will  be  a  mercy  to  them ;  since  by  that 
means  they  will  all  become  Christians ;  which  they  would  never  have 


456 


RISING  IN  THE  ALPUJARRAS. 


\\\ 


'    !i      i 


With  these  events  may  be  said  to  terminate  the 
history  of  the  Moors,  or  the  Moriscos,  as  henceforth 
called,  under  the  present  reign.  Eight  centuries  had 
elapsed  since  their  first  occupation  of  the  country ; 
during  which  period  they  had  exhibited  all  the  various 
phases  of  civilization,  from  its  dawn  to  its  decline. 
Ten  years  had  sufficed  to  overturn  the  splendid  remains 
of  this  powerful  empire ;  and  ten  more,  for  its  nominal 
conversion  to  Christianity.  A  long  century  of  perse- 
cution, of  unmitigated  and  unmerited  suffering,  was 
to  follow,  before  the  whole  was  consummated  by  the 
expulsion  of  this  unhappy  race  from  the  Peninsula. 
Their  story,  in  this  latter  period,  furnishes  one  of  the 
most  memorable  examples  in  history,  of  the  impotence 
of  persecution,  even  in  support  of  a  good  cause  against 
a  bad  one.  It  is  a  lesson  that  cannot  be  too  deeply 
pondered  through  every  succeeding  age.  The  fires  of 
the  Inquisition  are,  indeed,  extinguished,  probably  to 
be  lighted  no  more.  But  where  is  the  land  which  can 
boast  that  the  spirit  of  intolerance,  which  forms  the 
very  breath  of  persecution,  is  altogether  extinct  in  its 
bosom  ? 

been,  had  they  continued  with  their  parents.  By  the  holy  execution 
of  which  piece  of  justice,  a  great  sum  of  money  will  flow  into  your 
Majesty's  treasury''  (Geddes,  Miscellaneous  Tracts,  vol.  i.  p.  71.) 
"  II  n'est  point  d'hostilit^  excellente  comme  la  Chrestienne,"  says  old 
Montaigne ;  "  nostre  zele  faict  merveilles,  quand  il  va  secondant  nostra 
pente  vers  la  haine,  la  cruaut6,  I'ambition,  Tavarice,  la  detraction, 
la  rebellion.  Nostre  religion  est  faicte  pour  extirper  les  vices ;  elle  les 
couvre,  les  nourrit,  les  incite."     Essais,  liv.  2,  chap.  12. 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

COLUMBUS. — PROSECUTION   OF   DISCOVERY. — HIS    TREAT- 
MENT  BY   THE   COURT. 


■MM 


1494-1503. 

Progress  of  Discovery. — Reaction  of  Public  Feeling. — The  Queen's 
Confidence  in  Columbus. — He  discovers  Terra  Firma. — Isabella 
sends  back  the  Indian  Slaves. — Complaints  against  Columbus. — 
Superseded  in  the  Government. — Vindication  of  the  Sovereigns. — 
His  fourth  and  last  Voyage. 

The  reader  will  turn  with  satisfaction  from  the 
melancholy  and  mortifying  details  of  superstition  to 
the  generous  efforts  which  the  Spanish  government 
was  making  to  enlarge  the  limits  of  science  and  do- 
minion in  the  west.  "Amidst  the  storms  and  troubles 
of  Italy,  Spain  was  every  day  stretching  her  wings 
over  a  wider  sweep  of  empire,  and  extending  the  glory 
of  her  name  to  the  far  Antipodes. ' '  Such  is  the  swell 
of  exultation  with  which  the  enthusiastic  Italian, 
Martyr,  notices  the  brilliant  progress  of  discovery 
under  his  illustrious  countryman  Columbus.*  The 
Spanish  sovereigns  had  never  lost  sight  of  the  new 
domain,  so  unexpectedly  opened  to  them,  as  it  were, 
from  the  depths  of  the  ocean.      The  first  accounts 

*  "  Inter  has  Italiae  procellas  magis  indies  ac  magis  alas  protendit 
Hispania,  imperium  auget,  gloriam  nomenque  suum  ad  Antipodes 
porriget."     Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  epist.  146. 

"  (457) 


:■ 


4S8 


PROGRESS   OF  DISCOVERY. 


transmitted  by  the  great  navigator  and  his  companions, 
on  his  second  voyage,  while  their  imaginations  were 
warm  with  the  beauty  and  novelty  of  the  scenes  which 
met  their  eyes  in  the  New  World,  served  to  keep  alive 
the  tone  of  excitement  which  their  unexpected  suc- 
cesses had  kindled  in  the  nation."  The  various  speci- 
mens sent  home  in  the  return  ships,  of  the  products 
of  these  unknown  regions,  confirmed  the  agreeable 
belief  that  they  formed  part  of  the  great  Asiatic 
continent,  which  had  so  long  excited  the  cupidity  of 
Europeans.  The  Spanish  court,  sharing  in  the  general 
enthusiasm,  endeavored  to  promote  the  spirit  of  dis- 
covery and  colonization,  by  forwarding  the  requisite 
supplies,  and  complying  promptly  with  the  most  mi- 
nute suggestions  of  Columbus.  But  in  less  than  two 
years  from  the  commencement  of  his  second  voyage 
the  face  of  things  experienced  a  melancholy  change. 
Accounts  were  received  at  home  of  the  most  alarming 
discontent  and  disaffection  in  the  colony;  while  the 
actual  returns  from  these  vaunted  regions  were  so 
scanty  as  to  bear  no  proportion  to  the  expenses  of  the 
expedition. 

»  See,  among  others,  a  letter  of  Dr.  Chanca,  who  accompanied 
Columbus  on  his  second  voyage.  It  is  addressed  to  the  authorities  of 
Seville.  After  noticing  the  evidences  of  gold  in  Hispaniola,  he  says, 
"  Ansi  que  de  cierto  los  Reyes  nuestros  Seiiores  desde  agora  se  pueden 
tener  por  los  mas  prosperos  e  mas  ricos  Principes  del  mundo,  porque 
tal  cosa  hasta  agora  no  se  ha  visto  ni  leido  de  ninguno  en  el  mundo, 
porque  verdaderamente  a  otro  camino  que  los  navios  vuelvan  puedan 
llevar  tanta  cantidad  de  oro  que  se  pueden  maravillar  cualesquiera 
que  lo  supieren."  In  another  part  of  the  letter,  the  Doctor  is  equally 
sanguine  in  regard  to  the  fruitfulness  of  the  soil  and  climate.  Letra 
de  Dr.  Chanca,  apud  Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Viages,  torn.  i.  pp. 
198-224. 


TREATMENT  OF  COLUL'BUS, 


459 


This  unfortunate  result  was  in  a  great  measure  im- 
putable to  the  misconduct  of  the  colonists  themselves. 
Most  of  them  were  adventurers,  who  had  embarked 
with  no  other  expectation  than  that  of  getting  together 
a  fortune  as  speedily  as  possible  in  the  golden  Indies. 
They  were  without  subordination,  patience,  industry, 
or  any  of  the  regular  habits  demanded  for  success  in 
such  an  enterprise.  As  soon  as  they  had  launched 
from  their  native  shore,  they  seemed  to  feel  themselves 
released  from  the  constraints  of  all  law.  They  har- 
bored jealousy  and  distrust  of  the  admiral  as  a  foreigner. 
The  cavaliers  and  hidalgos,  of  whom  there  were  too 
many  in  the  expedition,  contemned  him  as  an  upstart, 
whom  it  was  derogatory  to  obey.  From  the  first  mo- 
ment of  their  landing  in  Hispaniola,  they  indulged 
the  most  wanton  license  in  regard  to  the  unoffending 
natives,  who,  in  the  simplicity  of  their  hearts,  had 
received  the  white  men  as  messengers  from  Heaven. 
Their  outrages,  however,  soon  provoked  a  general 
resistance,  which  led  to  such  a  war  of  extermination 
that,  in  less  than  four  years  after  the  Spaniards  had 
set  foot  on  the  island,  one-third  of  its  population, 
amounting,  probably,  to  several  hundred  thousands, 
were  sacrificed  !  Such  were  the  melancholy  auspices 
under  which  the  intercourse  was  opened  between  the 
civilized  white  man  and  the  simple  natives  of  the 
western  world. ^ 

These  excesses,  and  a  total  neglect  of  agriculture, — 
for  none  would  condescend  to  turn  up  the  earth  for 


3  Fernando  Colon,  Hist,  del  Almirante,  cap.  60,  62. — Munoz,  Hist, 
del  Nuevo-Mundo,  lib.  5,  sec.  25. — Herrera,  Indias  occidentales,  dec. 
l,lib.  2,  cap.  9. — Benzoni,  Novi  Orbis  Hist,  lib.  i,  cap.  9. 


460 


PROGRESS  OF  DISCOVERY. 


Ill 


any  other  object  than  the  gold  they  could  find  in  it, — 
at  length  occasioned  an  alarming  scarcity  of  provisions; 
while  the  poor  Indians  neglected  their  usual  husbandry, 
being  willing  to  starve  themselves,  so  that  they  could 
starve  out  their  oppressors.*  In  order  to  avoid  the 
famine  which  menaced  his  little  colony,  Columbus 
was  obliged  to  resort  to  coercive  measures,  shortening 
the  allowance  of  food,  and  compelling  all  to  work, 
without  distinction  of  rank.  These  unpalatable  regula- 
tions soon  bred  general  discontent.  The  high-mettled 
hidalgos,  especially,  complained  loudly  of  the  indig- 
nity of  such  mechanical  drudgery,  while  Father  Boil 
and  his  brethren  were  equally  outraged  by  the  diminu- 
tion of  their  regular  rations. ' 

The  Spanish  sovereigns  were  now  daily  assailed  with 
complaints  of  the  maladministration  of  Columbus, 
and  of  his  impolitic  and  unjust  severities  to  both 
Spaniards  and  natives.  They  lent,  however,  an  un- 
willing ear  to  these  vague  accusations ;  they  fully  ap- 
preciated the  difficulties  of  his  situation;  and,  although 
they  sent  out  an  agent  to  inquire  into  the  nature  of  the 
troubles  which  threatened  the  existence  of  the  colony 
(August,  1495),  they  were  careful  to  select  an  individual 
who  they  thought  would  be  most  grateful  to  the  admi- 
ral; and  when  the  latter,  in  the  following  year,  1496, 

4  The  Indians  had  some  grounds  for  relying  on  the  efficacy  of  star- 
vation, if,  as  Las  Casas  gravely  asserts,  "  one  Spaniard  consumed  in  a 
single  day  as  much  as  would  suffice  three  families!"  Llorente, 
CEuvres  de  Don  Barthelemi  de  las  Casas,  preced^es  de  sa  Vie  (Paris, 
1822),  torn.  i.  p.  II. 

5  Martyr,  De  Rebus  Oceanicis,  dec.  i,  lib.  4. — Gomara,  Hist,  de  las 
Indias,  cap.  20,  torn.  ii. — Herrera,  Indias  occidentales,  dec.  i,  lib.  2, 
cap.  12. 


TREATMENT  OF  COLUMBUS. 


461 


returned  to  Spain,  they  received  him  with  the  most 
ample  acknowledgments  of  regard.  "Come  to  us," 
they  said,  in  a  kind  letter  of  congratulation,  addressed 
to  him  soon  after  his  arrival,  "when  you  can  do  it 
without  inconvenience  to  yourself,  for  you  have  en- 
dured too  many  vexations  already."* 

The  admiral  brought  with  him,  as  before,  such  sam- 
ples of  the  productions  of  the  western  hemisphere  as 
would  strike  the  public  eye  and  keep  alive  the  feeling 
of  curiosity.  On  his  journey  through  Andalusia,  he 
passed  some  days  under  the  hospitable  roof  of  the 
good  curate  Bernaldez,  who  dwells  with  much  satis- 
faction on  the  remarkable  appearance  of  the  Indian 
chiefs  following  in  the  admiral's  train,  gorgeously  deco- 
rated with  golden  collars  and  coronets  and  various 
barbaric  ornaments.  Among  these  he  particularly 
notices  certain  "  belts  and  masks  of  cotton  and  of 
wood,  with  figures  of  the  Devil  embroidered  and 
carved  thereon,  sometimes  in  his  own  proper  likeness, 
and  at  others  in  that  of  a  cat  or  an  owl.  There  is 
much  reason,"  he  infers,  "to  believe  that  he  appears 
to  the  islanders  in  this  guise,  and  that  they  are  all 
idolaters,  having  Satan  for  their  lord  !"' 

But  neither  the  attractions  of  the  spectacle,  nor  the 
glowing  representations  of  Columbus,  who  fancied  he 

6  Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Viages,  torn,  ii.,  Doc.  dipl.,  no.  loi. — 
Fernando  Colon,  Hist,  del  Almirante,  cap.  64. — Muftoz,  Hist,  del 
Nuevo-Mundo,  lib.  5,  sec.  31. 

7  Bernaldez,  Reyes  Cat61icos,  MS.,  cap.  131. — Herrera  expresses  the 
same  charitable  opinion  :  "  Muy  claramente  se  conocio  que  el  demonic 
estava  apoderado  de  aquella  gente,  y  la  traia  ciega  y  engaliada,  ha- 
blandoles,  y  mostrandoles  en  diversas  figuras."  Indius  uccidentales, 
lib.  3,  cap.  4. 


46  a 


PROGRESS  OF  DISCOVERY. 


had  discovered  in  the  mines  of  Hispaniola  the  Tolden 
quarries  of  Ophir,  from  which  King  Solomon  liad 
enriched  the  temple  of  Jerusalem,  could  rekindle  the 
dormant  enthusiasm  of  the  nation.  The  novelty  of 
the  thing  had  passed.  They  heard  a  different  tale, 
moreover,  from  the  other  voyagers,  whose  wan  and 
sallow  visages  provoked  the  bitter  jest  that  they  had 
returned  with  more  gold  in  their  faces  than  in  their 
pockets.  In  short,  the  skepticism  of  the  public 
seemed  now  quite  in  proportion  to  its  former  over- 
weening confidence  ;  and  the  returns  were  so  meagre, 
says  Bernaldez,  "that  it  was  very  generally  believed 
there  was  little  or  no  gold  in  the  island."' 

Isabella  was  far  from  participating  in  this  unreason- 
able distrust.  She  had  espoused  the  theory  of  Colum- 
I,  '.s  when  others  looked  coldly  or  contemptuously  on 
it.'  She  firmly  relied  on  his  repeated  assurances  that 
the  track  of  discovery  would  lead  to  other  and  more 
important  regions.  She  formed  a  higher  estimate, 
moreover,  of  the  value  of  the  new  acquisitions  than 
any  founded  on  the  actual  proceeds  in  gold  and  silver; 
keeping  ever  in  view,  as  her  letters  and  instructions 
abundantly  show,  the  glorious  purpose  of  introducing 
the  blessings  of  Christian  civilization  among  the  hea- 

*  Bernaldez,  Reyes  Catolicos,  MS.,  cap.  131. — Munoz,  Hist,  del 
Nuevo-Mundo,  lib.  6,  sec.  i. 

9  Columbus,  in  his  letter  to  Prince  John's  nurse,  dated  1500,  makes 
the  following  ample  acknowledgment  of  the  queen's  early  protection 
of  him  :  "  En  todos  hobo  incredulidad,  y  a  la  Reina  mi  Sefiora  dio 
Nuestro  Senor  el  espiritu  de  inteligencia  y  esfuerzo  grande,  y  la  hizo 
de  todo  heredera  como  a  cara  y  muy  amada  hija."  "  Su  Alteza  lo 
aprobaba  al  contrario,  y  lo  sostuvo  fasta  que  pudo."  Navarrete, 
Coleccion  de  Viages,  torn.  i.  p.  266. 


TREATMENT  Oh  COLUMBUS, 


463 


then.*"  She  entertained  a  deep  sense  of  the  merits  of 
Columbus,  to  whose  serious  and  elevated  character  her 
own  bore  much  resemblance;  although  the  enthusiasm 
which  distinguished  each  was  naturally  tempered  in 
hers  with  somewhat  more  of  benignity  and  discretion. 

But,  although  the  queen  was  willing  to  give  the  most 
effectual  support  to  his  great  enterprise,  the  situation 
of  the  country  was  such  as  made  delay  in  its  immediate 
prosecution  unavoidable.  Large  expense  was  necessa- 
rily incurred  for  the  actual  maintenance  of  the  colony;" 
the  exchequer  was  liberally  drained,  moreover,  by  the 
Italian  war,  as  well  as  by  the  profuse  magnificence  with 
which  the  nuptials  of  the  royal  family  were  now  cele- 
brating. It  was,  indeed,  in  the  midst  of  the  courtly 
revelries  attending  the  marriage  of  Prince  John  that 
the  admiral  presented  himself  before  the  sovereigns  at 
Burgos,  after  his  second  voyage.  Such  was  the  low 
condition  of  the  treasury  from  these  causes  that  Isabella 
was  obliged  to  defray  the  cost  of  an  outfit  to  the  col- 
ony, at  this  time,  from  funds  originally  destined  for 
the  marriage  of  her  daughter  Isabella  with  the  king  of 
Portugal." 

This  unwelcome  delay,  however,  was  softened  to 
Columbus  by  the  distinguished  marks  which  he  daily 
received  of  the  royal  favor ;  and  various  ordinances 
were  passed,  confirming  and  enlarging  his  great  powers 

w  See  the  letters  to  Columbus,  dated  May  14th,  1493,  August,  1494, 
apud  Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Viages,  torn.  ii.  pp.  66,  154,  et  mult.  al. 

"  The  salaries  alone,  annually  disbursed  by  the  crown  to  persons 
resident  in  the  colony,  amounted  to  six  millions  of  maravedis.  Mufioz, 
Hist,  del  Nuevo-Mundo,  lib.  5,  sec.  33. 

"  Idem,  lib.  6,  sec.  2. — Fernando  Colon,  Hist,  del  Almirante,  cap, 
64. — Herrera,  Indias  occidentaies,  lib.  3,  cap.  i. 


464 


PROGHESS  OF  DISCOVERY. 


\ 


and  privileges  in  the  most  ample  manner,  to  a  greater 
extent,  indeed,  than  his  modesty,  or  his  prudence, 
would  allow  him  to  accept. '^  The  language  in  which 
these  princely  gratuities  were  conferred  rendered  them 
doubly  grateful  to  his  noble  heart,  containing,  as  they 
did,  the  most  emphatic  acknowledgments  of  his  "many, 
good,  loyal,  distinguished,  and  continual  services,"  and 
thus  testifying  the  unabated  confidence  of  his  sovereigns 
in  his  integrity  and  prudence.'* 

Among  the  impediments  to  tiie  immediate  comple- 
tion of  the  arrangements  for  the  admiral's  departure 
on  his  third  voyage  may  be  also  noticed  the  hostility 
of  Bishop  Fonseca,  who  at  this  period  had  the  control 
of  the  Indian  department ;  a  man  of  an  irritable  and, 
as  it  would  seem,  most  unforgiving  temper,  who,  from 
some  causes  of  disgust  which  he  had  conceived  with 
Columbus  previous  to  his  second  voyage,  lost  no  op- 
portunity of  annoying  and  thwarting  him,  for  which 
his  official  station  unfortunately  afforded  him  too  many 
facilities. 's 

From  these  various  circumstances  the  admiral's  fleet 


•3  Such,  for  example,  was  the  grant  of  an  immense  tract  of  land  in 
Hispaniola,  with  the  title  of  count  or  duke,  as  the  admiral  might  prefer. 
Munoz,  Hist,  del  Nuevo-Mundo,  lib.  6,  sec.  17. 

'4  Tlie  instrument  establishing  the  mayorazgo,  or  perpetual  entail  of 
Columbus's  estates,  contains  an  injunction  that  "  his  heirs  shall  never 
use  any  other  signature  than  that  of '  the  Admiral,"  el  Almirante,  what- 
ever other  titles  and  honors  may  belong  to  them."  That  title  indicated 
his  peculiar  achievements,  and  it  was  an  honest  pride  which  led  him 
by  this  simple  expedient  to  perpetuate  the  remembrance  of  them  in  his 
posterity.  See  the  original  document,  apud  Navarrete,  Coleccion  de 
Viages,  tom.  ii.  pp.  221-235. 

•5  Munoz,  Hist,  del  Nuevo-Mundo,  lib.  6,  sec.  20. — Fernando  Colon, 
Hist,  del  Almirante,  cap.  64. — Zuiiiga,  Annales  de  Sevilla,  afio  1496. 


THEATME^T  OF  COLUMBUS. 


465 


fleet 


was  not  ready  before  the  beginning  of  1498.  Even 
then  further  embarrassment  occurred  in  manning  it,  as 
few  were  found  willing  to  embark  in  a  service  which 
had  fallen  into  such  general  discredit.  This  led  to 
the  ruinous  expedient  of  substituting  convicts,  whose 
regular  punishments  were  commuted  into  transporta- 
tion, for  a  limited  period,  to  the  Indies.  No  measure 
could  possibly  have  been  devised  more  effectual  for  the 
ruin  of  the  infant  settlement.  The  seeds  of  corruption, 
which  had  been  so  long  festering  in  the  Old  World, 
soon  shot  up  into  a  plentiful  harvest  in  the  New,  and 
Columbus,  who  suggested  the  measure,  was  the  first  to 
reap  the  fruits  of  it. 

At  length,  all  being  in  readiness,  the  admiral  em- 
barked on  board  his  little  squadron,  consisting  of  six 
vessels,  whose  complement  of  men,  notwithstanding 
every  exertion,  was  still  deficient,  and  took  his  de- 
parture from  the  port  of  St.  Lucar,  May  30th,  1498. 
He  steered  in  a  more  southerly  direction  than  on  his 
preceding  voyages,  and  on  the  ist  of  August  suc- 
ceeded in  reaching  terra  firma  ;  thus  entitling  himself 
to  the  glory  of  being  the  first  to  set  foot  on  the  great 
southern  continent,  to  which  he  had  before  opened 
the  way.'* 

It  is  not  necessary  to  pursue  the  track  of  the  illus- 
trious voyager,  whose  career,  forming  the  most  brilliant 
episode  to  the  history  of  the  present  reign,  has  been  so 

16  Peter  Martyr,  De  Rebus  Oceanicis,  dec.  i,  lib.  6. — Navarrete, 
Coleccion  de  Viages,  torn,  ii.,  Doc.  dipl.,  nos.  ii6,  120. — Tercer  Viage 
de  Colon,  apud  Navarrete,  torn.  i.  p.  245. — Benzoni,  Novi  Orbis  Hist., 
lib.  I,  cap.  10,  II. — Herrera,  Indias  occidentales,  dec.  i,  lib.  3,  cap.  10, 
II. — Munoz,  Hist,  del  Nuevo-Mundo,  lib.  6,  sec.  ig. 
Vol.  II. -30  u* 


466 


PHOGRESS   OF  DISCOVERY. 


recently  traced  by  a  hand  which  few  will  care  to  follow. 
It  will  sufifice  briefly  to  notice  his  personal  relations 
with  the  Spanish  government,  and  the  principles  on 
which  the  colonial  administration  was  conducted. 

On  his  arrival  at  Hispaniola,  Columbus  found  the 
affairs  of  the  colony  in  the  most  deplorable  confusion. 
An  insurrection  had  been  raised  by  the  arts  of  a  few 
factious  individuals  against  his  brother  Bartholomew, 
to  whom  he  had  intrusted  the  government  during  his 
absence.  In  this  desperate  rebellion,  all  the  interests 
of  the  community  were  neglected.  The  mines,  which 
were  just  beginning  to  yield  a  golden  harvest,  remained 
un wrought.  The  unfortunate  natives  were  subjected 
to  the  most  inhuman  oppression.  There  was  no  law 
but  that  of  the  strongest.  Columbus,  on  his  arrival, 
in  vain  endeavored  to  restore  order.  The  very  crewi 
he  brought  with  him,  who  had  been  unfortunately  re- 
prieved from  the  gibbet  in  their  own  country,  served 
to  swell  the  mass  of  mutiny.  The  admiral  exhausted 
art,  negotiation,  entreaty,  force,  and  succeeded  at  length 
in  patching  up  a  specious  reconciliation  by  such  con- 
cessions as  essentially  impaired  his  own  authority. 
Among  these  was  the  grant  of  large  tracts  of  land  to 
the  rebels,  with  permission  to  the  proprietor  to  employ 
an  allotted  number  of  the  natives  in  its  cultivation. 
This  was  the  origin  of  the  celebrated  system  of  reparti- 
mientos,  which  subsequently  led  to  the  foulest  abuses 
that  ever  disgraced  humanity.'' 

«7  Gomara,  Hist,  de  las  Indius,  cap.  20. — Benzoni,  Novi  Orbis  Hist., 
lib.  I,  cap.  10,  II. — Garibay,  Compendio,  torn.  ii.  lib.  19,  cap.  7. — Fer- 
nando Colon,  Hist,  del  Almirante,  cap.  73-82. — Peter  Martyr,  De 
Rebus  Oceanicis,  dec.  i,  lib.  5. — Herrera,  Indias  occidentales,  dec.  i, 
lib.  3,  cap.  16. — Mu'.oz,  Hist,  de^  Nuevo-Mundo,  lib.  6,  sec.  40-42. 


TREATMENT  OF  COLUMBUS. 


467 


Nearly  a  year  elapsed  after  the  admiral's  return  to 
Hispaniola,  before  he  succeeded  in  allaying  these  in- 
testine feuds.  In  the  mean  while,  rumors  were  every 
day  reaching  Spain  of  the  distractions  of  the  colony, 
accompanied  with  most  injurious  imputations  on  the 
conduct  of  Columbus  and  his  brother,  who  were  loudly 
accused  of  oppressing  both  Spaniards  and  Indians,  and 
of  sacrificing  the  public  interests,  in  the  most  unscru- 
pulous manner,  to  their  own.  These  complaints  were 
rung  in  the  very  ears  of  the  sovereigns  by  numbers  of 
the  disaffected  colonists,  who  had  returned  to  Spain, 
and  who  surrounded  the  king,  as  he  rode  out  on  horse- 
back, clamoring  loudly  for  the  discharge  of  the  arrears 
of  which  they  said  the  admiral  had  defrauded  them.*^ 

There  were  not  wanting,  even,  persons  of  high  con- 
sideration at  the  court,  to  give  credence  and  circulation 
to  these  calumnies.  The  recent  discovery  of  the  pearl- 
fisheries  of  Paria,  as  well  as  of  more  prolific  veins  of 
the  precious  metals  in  Hispaniola,  and  the  prospect  of 
an  indefinite  extent  of  unexplored  country,  opened  by 
the  late  voyage  of  Columbus,  made  the  viceroyalty 
of  the  New  World  a  tempting  bait  for  the  avarice 
and  ambition  of  the  most  potent  grandee.  They  art- 
fully endeavored,  therefore,  to  undermine  the  admiral's 

'8  Garibay,  Compendio,  torn.  ii.  lib.  19,  cap.  7. — Peter  Martyr,  De 
Rebus  Oceanicis,  dec.  i,  lib.  7. — Gomara,  Hist,  de  las  Indias,  cap.  23. 
— Benzoni,  Novi  Orbis  Hist.,  cap.  11.— Ferdinand  Columbus  mentions 
that  he  and  his  brother,  who  were  then  pages  to  the  queen,  could  not 
stir  out  into  the  courtyard  of  the  Alhambra  without  being  followed  by 
fifty  of  these  vagabonds,  who  insulted  them  in  the  grossest  manner, 
"  as  the  sons  of  the  adventurer  who  had  led  so  many  brave  Spanish 
hidalgos  to  seek  their  graves  in  the  land  of  vanity  and  delusion  which 
he  had  found  out."     Hist,  del  Almirante,  cap.  85. 


468 


PROGRESS   OF  DISCOVERY. 


credit  with  the  sovereigns,  by  raising  in  their  minds 
suspicions  of  his  integrity,  founded  not  merely  on 
vague  reports,  but  on  letters  received  from  the  colony, 
charging  him  with  disloyalty,  with  appropriating  to  his 
own  use  the  revenues  of  the  island,  and  with  the  design 
of  erecting  an  independent  government  for  himself.'' 

Whatever  weight  these  absurd  charges  may  have 
had  with  Ferdinand,  they  liad  no  power  to  shake  the 
queen's  confidence  in  Columbus  or  lead  her  to  suspect 
his  loyalty  for  a  moment.  But  the  long-continued  dis- 
tractions of  the  colony  made  her  feel  a  natural  distrust 
of  his  capacity  to  govern  it,  whether  from  the  jealousy 
entertained  of  him  as  a  foreigner,  or  from  some  in- 
herent deficiency  in  his  own  character.  These  doubts 
were  mingled,  it  is  true,  with  sterner  feelings  towards 
the  admiral,  on  the  arrival,  at  this  juncture,  of  several 
of  the  rebels  with  the  Indian  slaves  assigned  to  them 
by  his  orders. "^ 

It  was  the  received  opinion  among  good  Catholics 
of  that  period,  that  heathen  and  barbarous  nations 
were  placed  by  the  circumstance  of  their  infidelity 
without  the  pale  both  of  spiritual  and  civil  rights. 
Their  souls  were  doomed  to  eternal  perdition.     Their 


'9  Benzoni,  Novi  Orbis  Hist.,  lib.  i,  cap.  12. — National  feeling  oper- 
ated, no  doubt,  as  well  as  avarice  to  sharpen  the  tooth  of  slander 
against  the  admiral,  "^gre  multi  patiuntur,"  says  Columbus's  coun- 
tryman, with  honest  warmth,  "  peregrinum  hominem,  et  quidem  e  nos- 
tra Italia  ortum,  tan  turn  honoris  ac  glorise  consequutum,  ut  non  tantum 
Hispanicae  gentis,  sed  et  cujusvis  alterius  homines  superaverit."  Ben- 
zoni, lib.  I,  cap.  5. 

=°  Herrera,  Indias  occidentales,  lib.  4,  cap.  7,  10,  and  more  espe- 
cially lib.  6,  cap.  13. — Las  Casas,  CEuvres,  6d.  de  Llorente,  tom.  i.  p. 
306. 


TREATMENT  OF  COLUMBUS. 


469 


bodies  were  the  property  of  the  Christian  nation  who 
should  occupy  their  soil."  Such,  in  brief,  were  the 
profession  and  the  practice  of  the  most  enlightened 
Europeans  of  the  fifteenth  century ;  and  such  the  de- 
plorable maxims  which  regulated  the  intercourse  of  the 
Spanish  and  Port,  guese  navigators  with  the  uncivilized 
natives  of  the  western  world.""  Columbus,  agreeably 
to  these  views,  had,  very  soon  after  the  occupation  of 


•»  "  La  quality  de  Catholique  Romain,"  says  the  philosophic  Vil- 
lers,  "  avait  tout-^-fait  remplac6  celle  d'homme,  et  meme  de  Chretien. 
Qui  n'^tait  pas  Catholique  Romain,  n'etait  pas  homme,  ctait  moins 
qu'homme ;  et  eflt-il  k.\&  un  souverain,  c'etait  une  bonne  action  que  de 
lui  6tcr  la  vie."  (Essai  sur  la  Reformation,  p,  56,  6d.  1820.)  Las 
Casas  rests  the  title  of  the  Spanish  crown  to  its  American  possessions 
on  the  original  papal  grant,  made  on  condition  of  converting  the 
natives  to  Christianity.  The  pope,  as  vicar  of  Jesus  Christ,  possesses 
plenary  authority  over  all  men  for  the  safety  of  their  souls.  He 
might,  therefore,  in  furtherance  of  this,  confer  on  the  Spanish  sover- 
eigns imperial  supremacy  over  all  lands  discovered  by  them, — not, 
however,  to  the  prejudice  of  authorities  already  existing  there,  and 
over  such  nations  only  as  voluntarily  embraced  Christianity.  Such  is 
the  sum  of  his  thirty  propositions  submitted  to  the  council  of  the  In- 
dies for  the  inspection  of  Charles  V.  (CEuvres,  ed.  de  Llorente,  torn, 
i.  pp.  286-311.)  One  may  see  in  these  arbitrary  and  whimsical  limita- 
tions the  good  bishop's  desire  to  reconcile  what  reason  told  him  were 
the  natural  rights  of  man,  with  what  faith  prescribed  as  the  legitimate 
prerogative  of  the  pope.  Few  Roman  Catholics  at  the  present  day 
will  be  found  sturdy  enough  to  maintain  this  lofty  prerogative,  how- 
ever carefully  limited.  Still  fewer  in  the  sixteenth  century  would  have 
^^allenged  it.  Indeed,  it  is  but  just  to  Las  Casas  to  admit  that  the 
general  scope  of  his  arguments,  here  and  elsewhere,  is  very  far  in 
advance  of  his  age. 

=»  A  Spanish  casuist  founds  the  right  of  his  nation  to  enslave  the 
Indians,  among  other  things,  on  their  smoking  tobacco  and  not 
trimming  their  beards  h  I' Espagnole.  At  least  this  is  Montesquieu's 
interpretation  of  it.  (Esprit  des  Lois,  lib.  15,  chap.  3.)  The  doctors 
of  the  Inquisition  could  hardly  have  found  a  better  reason. 


si 


470 


PJiOGKESS  OF  DISCOVERY. 


Hispaniola,  recommended  a  regular  exchange  of  slaves 
for  the  commodities  required  for  the  support  of  the 
colony;  representing,  moreover,  that  in  this  way  their 
conversion  would  be  more  surely  effected, — an  object, 
it  must  be  admitted,  which  he  seems  to  have  ever  had 
most  earnestly  at  heart. 

Isabella,  however,  entertained  views  on  this  matter 
far  more  liberal  than  those  of  her  age.  She  had  been 
deeply  interested  by  the  accounts  she  had  received 
from  the  admiral  himself  of  the  gentle,  unoffending 
character  of  the  islanders ;  and  she  revolted  at  the  idea 
of  consigning  them  to  the  horrors  of  slavery,  without 
even  an  effort  for  their  conversion.  She  hesitated, 
therefore,  to  sanction  his  proposal ;  and,  when  a  num- 
ber of  Indian  captives  were  advertised  to  be  sold  in 
the  markets  of  Andalusia,  she  commanded  the  sale  to 
be  suspended,  till  the  opinion  of  a  council  of  theolo- 
gians and  doctors,  learned  in  such  matters,  could  be 
obtained  as  to  its  conscientious  lawfulness.  She  yielded 
still  further  to  the  benevolent  impulses  of  her  nature, 
causing  holy  men  to  be  instructed  as  far  as  possible  in 
the  Indian  languages  and  sent  out  as  missionaries  for 
the  conversion  of  the  natives.'^  Some  of  them,  as 
Father  Boil  and  his  brethren,  seem,  indeed,  to  have 
been  more  concerned  for  the  welfare  of  their  own 
bodies  than  for  the  souls  of  their  benighted  flock. 
But  others,  imbued  with  a  better  spirit,  wrought  in  the 
good  work  with  disinterested  zeal,  and,  if  we  may 
credit  their  accounts,  with  some  efficacy.'^ 

"3  Muiioz,  Hist,  del  Nuevo-Mundo,  lib.  $,  sec.  34. — Navarrete, 
Ccicccion  de  Viages,  torn,  il.,  Doc.  dipl.,  no.  92. — Herrera,  Indias 
occidentales,  lib.  3,  cap.  4. 

»4"  Among  other  things  that  the  holy  fathers  carried  out,"  says 


T^ 


TREATMENT  OF  COLUMBUS. 


471 


In  the  same  beneficent  spirit,  the  royal  letters  and 
ordinances  urged  over  and  over  again  the  paramount 
obligation  of  the  religious  instruction  of  the  natives, 
and  of  observing  the  utmost  gentleness  and  humanity 
in  all  dealings  with  them.  When,  therefore,  the  queen 
learned  the  arrival  of  two  vessels  from  the  Indies,  with 
three  hundred  slaves  on  board,  which  the  admiral  had 
granted  to  the  mutineers,  she  could  not  repress  her 
indignation,  but  impatiently  asked,  "By  what  authority 
does  Columbus  venture  thus  to  dispose  of  my  subjects?" 
(June  20th,  1500.)  She  instantly  caused  proclamation 
to  be  made  in  the  southern  provinces,  that  all  who  had 
Indian  slaves  in  their  possession,  granted  by  the  admi- 
ral, should  forthwith  provide  for  their  return  to  their 
own  country;  while  the  few  still  held  by  the  crown 
were  to  be  restored  to  freedom  in  like  manner.^s 

After  a  long  and  visible  reluctance,  the  queen  acqui- 
esced in  sending  out  a  commissioner  to  investigate  the 
affairs  of  the  colony.  The  person  appointed  to  this 
delicate  trust  was  Don  Francisco  de  Bobadilla,  a  poor 
knight  of  Calatrava.     He  was  invested  with  supreme 

Robles,  "  was  a  little  organ  and  several  bells,  which  greatly  delighted 
the  simple  people,  so  that  from  one  to  two  thousand  persons  were 
baptized  every  day."  (Vidade  Ximenez,  p.  120.)  Ferdinand  Colum- 
bus remarks,  with  some  naivete,  that  "  the  Indians  were  so  obedient 
from  their  fear  of  the  admiral,  and  at  the  same  time  so  desirous  to 
oblige  him,  that  they  voluntarily  became  Christians."  Hist,  del 
Almirante,  cap.  84. 

»s  Herrera,  Indias  occidentales,  lib.  4,  cap.  7. — Navarrete,  Coleccion 
de  Viages,  tom.  ii..  Doc.  dipl.,  no.  134. — Las  Casas  observes  that  "so 
great  was  the  queen's  indignation  at  the  admiral's  misconduct  in  this 
particular,  that  nothing  but  the  consideration  of  his  great  public  ser- 
vices saved  him  from  immediate  disgrace."  CEuvres,  ^d.  de  Llorente, 
tom.  i.  p.  306. 


47a 


PJiOGJiESS  OF  DISCOVERY. 


powers  of  civil  and  criminal  jurisdiction.  He  was  to 
bring  to  trial  and  pass  sentence  on  all  such  as  had 
conspired  against  the  authority  of  Columbus.  He  was 
authorized  to  take  possession  of  the  fortresses,  vessels, 
public  stores,  and  property  of  every  description,  to 
dispose  of  all  offices,  and  to  command  whatever  per- 
sons he  might  deem  expedient  for  the  tranquillity  of 
the  island,  without  distinction  of  rank,  to  return  to 
Spain  and  present  themselves  before  the  sovereigns. 
Such,  in  brief,  was  the  sum  of  the  extraordinary 
powers  intrusted  to  Bobadilla.'* 

It  is  impossible  now  to  determine  what  motives 
could  have  led  to  the  selection  of  so  incompetent  an 
agent  for  an  office  of  such  high  responsibility.  He 
seems  to  have  been  a  weak  and  arrogant  man,  swelled 
with  unmeasurable  insolence  by  the  brief  authority 
thus  undeservedly  bestowed  on  him.  From  the  very 
first,  he  regarded  Columbus  in  the  light  of  a  convicted 
criminal,  on  whom  it  was  his  business  to  execute  the 
sentence  of  the  law.  Accordingly,  on  his  arrival  at  the 
island,  after  an  ostentatious  parade  of  his  credentials, 
he  commanded  the  admiral  to  appear  before  him,  and, 
without  affecting  the  forms  of  a  legal  inquiry,  at  once 
caused  him  to  be  manacled  and  thrown  into  prison. 
(August  23,  1500.)  Columbus  submitted  without  the 
least  show  of  resistance,  displaying  in  this  sad  reverse 
a  magnanimity  of  soul   which   would   have   touched 

"*  Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Viages,  torn,  ii.,  Doc.  dipl.,  nos.  127-130. 
The  original  commission  to  Bobadilla  was  dated  March  21st,  and  May 
2ist,  1499 ;  the  execution  of  it,  however,  was  delayed  until  July, 
1500,  in  the  hope,  doubtless,  of  obtaining  such  tidings  from  His- 
paniola  as  should  obviate  the  necessity  of  a  measure  so  prejudicial  to 
the  admiral. 


TREATMENT  OF  COLUMBUS, 


473 


to 


the  heart  of  a  generous  adversary.  Bobadilla,  how- 
ever, discovered  no  such  sensibility;  and,  after  raking 
together  all  the  foul  or  frivolous  calumnies  which 
hatred  or  the  hope  of  favor  could  extort,  he  caused 
the  whole  loathsome  mass  of  accusation  to  be  sent 
back  to  Spain  with  the  admiral,  whom  he  commanded 
to  be  kept  strictly  in  irons  during  the  passage ; 
"afraid,"  says  Ferdinand  Columbus,  bitterly,  **lest 
he  might  by  any  chance  swim  back  again  to  the 
island.'"' 

This  excess  of  malice  served,  as  usual,  however,  to 
defeat  itself.  So  enormous  an  outrage  shocked  the 
minds  of  those  most  prejudiced  against  Columbus. 
All  seemed  to  feel  it  as  a  national  dishonor  that  such 
indignities  should  be  heaped  on  the  man  who,  what- 
ever might  be  his  indiscretions,  had  done  so  much  for 
Spain,  and  for  the  whole  civilized  world ;  a  man  who, 
in  the  honest  language  of  an  old  writer,  "had  he 
lived  in  the  days  of  ancient  Greece  or  Rome,  would 
have  had  statues  raised  and  temples  and  divine  honors 
dedicated  to  him,  as  to  a  divinity !  "=* 

None  partook  of  the  general  indignation  more 
strongly  than  Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  who,  in  addi- 

V  Fernando  Colon,  Hist,  del  Almirante,  cap.  86. — Garibay,  Com- 
pendio,  torn.  ii.  lib.  19,  cap.  7. — Peter  Martyr,  De  Rebus  Oceanicis, 
dec.  I,  lib.  7. — Gomara,  Hist,  de  las  Indias,  cap.  23. — Herrera,  Indias 
occidentales,  lib.  4,  cap.  lo. — Benzoni,  Novi  Orbis  Hist.,  lib.  i, 
cap.  12. 

=*  Benzoni,  Novi  Orbis  Hist.,  lib.  i,  cap.  12. — Herrera,  Indias  occi- 
dentales, lib.  6,  cap.  15. — Ferdinand  Columbus  tells  us  that  his  father 
kept  the  fetters  in  which  he  was  brought  horn  ■,  hanging  up  in  an  apart- 
ment of  his  house,  as  a  perpetual  memorial  of  national  ingratitude, 
and,  when  he  died,  ordered  them  to  be  buried  in  the  same  grave  with 
himself.     Hist,  del  Almirante,  cap.  86. 


474 


PROGRESS  OF  DISCOVERY. 


tion  to  their  personal  feelings  of  disgust  at  so  gross  an 
act,  readily  comprehended  the  whole  weight  of  obloquy 
which  its  perpetration  must  necessarily  attach  to  them. 
They  sent  to  Cadiz  without  an  instant's  delay,  and 
commanded  the  admiral  to  be  released  from  his  igno- 
minious fetters.  They  wrote  to  him  in  the  most  be- 
nignant terms,  expressing  their  sincere  regret  for  the 
unworthy  usage  which  he  had  experienced,  and  request- 
ing him  to  appear  before  them  as  speedily  as  possible, 
at  Granada,  where  the  court  was  then  staying.  At  the 
same  time,  they  furnished  him  a  thousand  ducats  for 
his  expenses,  and  a  handsome  retinue  to  escort  him  on 
his  journey. 

Columbus,  revived  by  these  assurances  of  the  kind 
dispositions  of  his  sovereigns,  proceeded  without  delay 
to  Granada,  which  he  reached  on  the  1 7th  of  Decem- 
ber, 1500.  Immediately  on  his  arrival  he  obtained  an 
audience.  The  queen  could  not  repress  her  tears  at 
the  sight  of  the  man  ^yhose  illustrious  services  had  met 
with  such  ungenerous  requital,  as  it  were,  at  her  own 
hands.  She  endeavored  to  cheer  his  wounded  spirit 
with  the  most  earnest  assurances  of  her  sympathy  and 
sorrow  for  his  misfortunes.  Columbus,  from  the  first 
moment  of  his  disgrace,  had  relied  on  the  good  faith 
and  kindness  of  Isabella ;  for,  as  an  ancient  Castilian 
writer  remarks,  "she  had  ever  favored  him  beyond  the 
king  her  husband,  protecting  his  interests,  and  show- 
ing him  especial  kindness  and  good  will."  When  he 
beheld  the  emotion  of  his  royal  mistress,  and  listened 
to  her  consolatory  language,  it  was  too  much  for  his 
loyal  and  generous  heart ;  and,  throwing  himself  on 
his  knees,  he  gave  vent  to  his  feelings,  and  sobbed 


TREATMENT  OF  COLUMBUS, 


475 


aloud.  The  sovereigns  endeavored  to  soothe  and 
tranquillize  his  mind,  and,  after  testifying  their  deep 
sense  of  his  injuries,  promised  him  that  impartial  justice 
should  be  done  his  enemies,  and  that  he  should  be  re- 
instated in  his  emoluments  and  honors."* 

Much  censure  has  attached  to  the  Spanish  govern- 
ment for  its  share  in  this  unfortunate  transaction ; 
both  in  the  appointment  of  so  unsuitable  an  agent  as 
Bobadilla,  and  the  delegation  of  such  broad  and  in- 
definite powers.  With  regard  to  the  first,  it  is  now 
too  late,  as  has  already  been  remarked,  to  ascertain  on 
what  grounds  such  a  selection  could  have  been  made. 
There  is  no  evidence  of  his  being  indebted  for  his  pro- 
motion to  intrigue  or  any  undue  influence.  Indeed, 
according  to  the  testimony  of  one  of  his  contempo- 
raries, he  was  reputed  "an  extremely  honest  and 
religious  man  j"  and  the  good  bishop  Las  Casas 
expressly  declares  that  **no  imputation  of  dishonesty 
or  avarice  had  ever  rested  on  his  character."  3°  It  was 
an  error  of  judgment  j  a  grave  one,  indeed,  and  must 
pass  for  as  much  as  it  is  worth. 

But  in  regard  to  the  second  charge,  of  delegating 
unwarrantable  powers,  it  should  be  remembered  that 
the  grievances  of  the  colony  were  represented  as  of  a 
most  pressing  nature,  demanding  a  prompt  and  per- 
emptory remedy;  that  a  more  limited  and  partial 
authority,  dependent  for  its  exercise  on  instructions 

"9  Garibay,  Compendio,  torn.  ii.  lib.  19,  cap.  7. — Peter  Martyr,  De 
Rebus  Oceanicis,  dec.  i,  lib.  7. — Fernando  Colon,  Hist,  del  Almirante, 
cap.  86,  87. — Herrera,  Indias  occidentales,  dec.  i,  lib.  4,  cap.  8-10. — 
Benzoni,  Novi  Orbis  Hist.,  lib.  i,  cap.  12. 

>>  Oviedo,  Hist.  gen.  de  las  Ind.,  P.  i,  lib.  3,  cap.  6, — Las  Casas, 
lib.  2,  cap.  6,  apud  Navarrete,  torn,  i.,  introd.,  p.  99. 


476 


PHOGHESS   OF  DISCO  VEX  Y. 


from  the  government  at  home,  mi^ht  be  attended  with 
ruinous  delays;  that  this  authority  must  necessarily  be 
paramount  to  that  of  Columbus,  who  was  a  party 
implicated ;  and  that,  although  unlimited  jurisdiction 
was  given  over  all  offences  committed  against  him,  yet 
neither  he  nor  his  friends  were  to  be  molested  in  any 
other  way  than  by  temporary  suspension  from  office, 
and  a  return  to  their  own  country,  where  the  merits 
of  their  case  might  be  submitted  to  the  sovereigns 
themselves. 

This  view  of  the  matter,  indeed,  is  perfectly  con- 
formable to  that  of  Ferdinand  Columbus,  whose  so- 
licitude, so  apparent  in  every  page,  for  his  father's 
reputation,  must  have  effectually  counterbalanced  any 
repugnance  he  may  have  felt  at  impugning  the  conduct 
of  his  sovereigns.  "The  only  ground  of  complaint," 
he  remarks,  in  summing  up  his  narrative  of  the  trans- 
action, "which  I  can  bring  against  their  Catholic 
Highnesses  is,  the  unfitness  of  the  agent  whom  they 
employed,  equally  malicious  and  ignorant.  Had  they 
sent  out  a  suitable  person,  the  admiral  would  have 
been  highly  gratified ;  since  he  had  more  than  once 
requested  the  appointment  of  some  one  with  full 
powers  of  jurisdiction  in  an  affair  where  he  felt  some 
natural  delicacy  in  moving,  in  consequence  of  his  own 
brother  having  been  originally  involved  in  it."  And, 
as  to  the  vast  magnitude  of  the  powers  intrusted  to 
Bobadilla,  he  adds,  "It  can  scarcely  be  wondered  at, 
considering  the  manifold  complaints  against  the  admi- 
ral made  to  their  Highnesses.  "3' 

Although  the  king  and  queen  determined  without 

31  Fernando  Colon,  Hist,  del  Almirante,  cap.  86. 


TREATMENT  OF  COLUMBUS, 


477 


hesitation  on  the  complete  restoration  of  the  admiral's 
honors,  they  thought  it  better  to  defer  his  reappoint- 
ment to  the  government  of  the  colony  until  the  present 
disturbances  should  be  settled  and  he  might  return 
there  with  personal  safety  and  advantage.  In  the 
mean  time,  they  resolved  to  send  out  a  competent  indi- 
vidual, and  to  support  him  with  such  a  force  as  should 
overawe  faction  and  enable  him  to  place  the  tranquillity 
of  the  island  on  a  permanent  basis. 

The  person  selected  was  Don  Nicolas  de  Ovando, 
comendador  of  Lares,  of  the  military  order  of  Alcan- 
tara. He  was  a  man  of  acknowledged  prudence  and 
sagacity,  temperate  in  his  habits,  and  plausible  and 
politic  in  his  address.  It  is  sufficient  evidence  of  his 
standing  at  court  that  he  had  been  one  of  the  ten 
youths  selected  to  be  educated  in  the  palace  as 
companions  for  the  prince  of  Asturias.  He  was  fur- 
nished with  a  fleet  of  two -and -thirty  sail,  carrying 
twenty-five  hundred  persons,  many  of  them  of  the  best 
families  in  the  kingdom,  with  every  variety  of  article 
for  the  nourishment  and  permanent  prosperity  of  the 
colony;  and  the  general  equipment  was  in  a  style  of 
expense  and  magnificence  such  as  had  never  before 
been  lavished  on  any  armada  destined  for  the  western 
waters.  3' 

The  new  governor  was  instructed  immediately  on  his 
arrival  to  send  Bobadilla  home  for  trial.  (September, 
1501.)  Under  his  lax  administration,  abuses  of  every 
kind  had  multiplied  to  an  alarming  extent,  and  the 

3a  Herrera,  Indins  occidentales,  dec.  i,  lib.  4,  cap.  ii. — Fernando 
Colon,  Hist,  del  Almirante,  cap.  87. — Benzoni,  Novi  Orbis  Hist.,  lib. 
I,  cap.  12. — Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de  Hist.,  torn.  vi.  p.  385. 


478 


PROGRESS  OF  DISCOVERY. 


poor  natives,  in  particular,  were  rapidly  wasting  away 
under  the  new  and  most  inhuman  arrangement  of  the 
repartimientos ,  which  he  had  established.  Isabella  now 
declared  the  Indians  free,  and  emphatically  enjoined 
on  the  authorities  of  Hispaniola  to  respect  them  as 
true  and  faithful  vassals  of  the  crown.  Ovando  was 
especially  to  ascertain  the  amount  of  losses  sustained 
by  Columbus  and  his  brothers,  to  provide  for  their  full 
indemnification,  and  to  secure  the  unmolested  enjoy- 
ment in  future  of  all  their  lawful  rights  and  pecuniary 
perquisites.  33 

Fortified  with  the  most  ample  instructions  in  regard 
to  these  and  other  details  of  his  administration,  the 
governor  embarked  on  board  his  magnificent  flotilla, 
and  crossed  the  bar  of  St.  Lucar,  February  15th,  1502. 
A  furious  tempest  dispersed  the  fleet  before  it  had  been 
out  a  week,  and  a  report  reached  Spain  that  it  had 
entirely  perished.  The  sovereigns,  overwhelmed  with 
sorrow  at  this  fresh  disaster,  which  consigned  so  many 
of  their  best  and  bravest  to  a  watery  grave,  shut  them- 
selves up  in  their  palace  for  several  days.  Fortunately, 
the  report  proved  ill  founded.  The  fleet  rode  out 
the  storm  in  safety,  one  vessel  only  having  perished, 
and  the  remainder  reached  in  due  time  the  place  of 
desti  nation,  ^-t 

The  Spanish  government  has  been  roundly  taxed 
with  injustice  and  ingratitude  for  its  delay  in  restoring 
Columbus  to  the  full  possession  of  his  colonial  author- 

33  Herrera,  Indias  occidentales,  lib.  4,  cap.  11-13. — Navarrete,  Colec- 
cion  de  Viages,  torn,  ii.,  Doc.  dipl.,  nos.  138,  144. — Fernando  Colon, 
Hist,  del  Almirante,  cap.  87. 

34  Herrera,  Indias  occidentales,  lib.  5,  cap.  i. 


TREATMENT  OF  COLUMBUS. 


479 


ity;  and  that  too  by  writers  generally  distinguished 
for  candor  and  impartiality.  No  such  animadversion, 
however,  so  far  as  I  am  aware,  is  countenanced  by 
contemporary  historians ;  and  it  appears  to  be  wholly 
undeserved.  Independent  of  the  obvious  inexpediency 
of  returning  him  immediately  to  the  theatre  of  dis- 
affection, before  the  embers  of  ancient  animosity  had 
had  time  to  cool,  there  were  several  features  in  his 
character  which  make  it  doubtful  whether  he  were  the 
most  competent  person,  in  any  event,  for  an  emergency 
demanding  at  once  the  greatest  coolness,  consummate 
address,  and  acknowledged  personal  authority.  His 
sublime  enthusiasm,  which  carried  him  victorious  over 
every  obstacle,  involved  him  also  in  numerous  embar- 
rassments, which  men  of  more  phlegmatic  temperament 
would  have  escaped.  It  led  him  to  count  too  readily 
on  a  similar  spirit  in  others, — and  to  be  disappointed. 
It  gave  an  exaggerated  coloring  to  his  views  and  de- 
scriptions, that  inevitably  led  to  a  reaction  in  the 
minds  of  such  as  embarked  their  all  on  the  splendid 
dreams  of  a  fairy-land  which  they  were  never  to  real- 
ize.^5     Hence  a  fruitful  source  of  discontent  and  dis- 


ss The  high  devotional  feeling  of  Columbus  led  him  to  trace  out 
allusions  in  Scripture  to  the  various  circumstances  and  scenes  of  his 
adventurous  life.  Thus,  he  believed  his  great  discovery  announced  in 
the  Apocalypse,  and  in  Isaiah  ;  he  identified,  as  I  have  before  stated, 
the  mines  of  Hispaniola  with  those  which  furnished  Solomon  with 
materials  for  his  temple ;  he  fancied  that  he  had  determined  the  actual 
locality  of  the  garden  of  Eden  in  the  newly-discovered  region  of  Pariti. 
But  his  greatest  extravagance  was  his  project  of  a  crusade  for  the  re- 
covery of  the  Holy  Sepulchre.  This  he  cherished  from  the  first  hour 
of  his  discovery,  pressing  it  in  the  most  urgent  manner  on  the  sover- 
eigns, and  making  actual  provision  for  it  in  his  testament.  This  was 
a  flight,  however,  beyond  the  spirit  even  of  this  romantic  age,  and 


i 


48o 


PJiOGHESS  OF  DISCOVERY. 


affection  in  his  followers.  It  led  him,  in  his  eagerness 
for  the  achievement  of  his  great  enterprises,  to  be  less 
scrupulous  and  politic  as  to  the  means  than  a  less 
ardent  spirit  would  have  been.  His  pertinacious  ad- 
herence to  the  scheme  of  Indian  slavery,  and  his  im- 
politic regulation  compelling  the  labor  of  the  hidalgos, 
are  pertinent  examples  of  this. 3*  He  was,  moreover, 
a  foreigner,  without  rank,  fortune,  or  powerful  friends; 
and  his  high  and  sudden  elevation  naturally  raised  him 
up  a  thousand  enemies  among  a  proud,  punctilious, 
and  intensely  national  people.  Under  these  multiplied 
embarrassments,  resulting  from  peculiarities  of  charac- 
ter and  situation,  the  sovereigns  might  well  be  excused 
for  not  intrusting  Columbus,  at  this  delicate  crisis, 
with  disentangling  the  meshes  of  intrigue  and  faction, 
in  which  the  affairs  of  the  colony  were  so  unhappily 
involved. 

I  trust  these  remarks  will  not  be  construed  into  an 
insensibility   to   the   merits   and    exalted   services   of 

probably  received  as  little  serious  attention  from  the  queen  as  from  her 
more  cool  and  calculating  husband.  Peter  Martyr,  De  Rebus  Oceani- 
cis,  dec.  I,  lib.  6. — Tercer  Viage  de  Colon,  apud  Navarrete,  Coleccion 
de  Viages,  torn.  i.  p.  259, — torn,  ii.,  Doc.  dipl.,  no.  140. — Herrera,  In- 
dias  occidentales,  lib.  6,  cap.  15. 

36  Another  example  was  the  injudicious  punishment  of  delinquents 
by  diminishing  their  regular  allowance  of  food,  a  measure  so  obnox- 
ious as  to  call  for  the  interference  of  the  sovereigns,  who  prohibited  it 
altogether.  (Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Viages,  tom.  ii.,  Doc.  dipl.,  no. 
97,)  Herrera,  who  must  be  admitted  to  have  been  in  no  degree  in- 
sensible to  the  merits  of  Columbus,  closes  his  account  of  the  various 
accusations  urged  against  him  and  his  brothers,  with  the  remark  that, 
"with  every  allowance  for  calumny,  they  must  be  confessed  not  to 
have  governed  the  Castilians  with  the  moderation  that  they  ought  to 
have  shown."     Indias  occidentales,  lib.  .}.,  cap.  9. 


TREATMENT  OF  COLUMBUS. 


481 


Columbus.  "A  world,"  to  borrow  the  words,  though 
not  the  application,  of  the  Greek  historian,  **is  his 
monument."  His  virtues  shine  with  too  bright  a  lustre 
to  be  dimmed  by  a  few  natural  blemishes ;  but  it  be- 
comes necessary  to  notice  these,  to  vindicate  the  Span- 
ish government  from  the  imputation  of  perfidy  and 
ingratitude,  where  it  has  been  most  freely  urged,  and 
apparently  with  the  least  foundation. 

It  is  more  difficult  to  excuse  the  paltry  equipment 
with  which  the  admiral  was  suffered  to  undertake  his 
fourth  and  last  voyage.  The  object  proposed  by  this 
expedition  was  the  discovery  of  a  passage  to  the  great 
Indian  Ocean,  which  he  inferred,  sagaciously  enough 
from  his  premises,  though,  as  it  turned  out, — to  the 
great  inconvenience  of  the  commercial  world, — most 
erroneously,  must  open  somewhere  between  Cuba  and 
the  coast  of  Paria.  Four  caravels  only  were  furnished 
for  the  expedition,  the  largest  of  which  did  not  exceed 
seventy  tons'  burden  ;  a  force  forming  a  striking 
contrast  to  the  magnificent  armada  lately  intrusted  to 
Ovando,  and  altogether  too  insignificant  to  be  vindi- 
cated on  the  ground  of  the  different  objects  proposed 
by  the  two  expeditions.^? 

Columbus,  oppressed  with  growing  infirmities  and  a 
consciousness,  perhaps,  of  the  decline  of  popular  favor, 
manifested  unusual  despondency  previously  to  his  em- 
barkation. He  talked,  even,  of  resigning  the  task  of 
further  discovery  to  his  brother  Bartholomew.  "  I 
have  established,"  said  he,  "all  that  I  proposed, — the 


37  Garibay,  Compendio,  tom.  ii.  lib.  19,  cap.  14. — Fernando  Colon, 
Hist,  del  Almirante,  cap.  88. — Herrera,  Indias  occidentales,  lib.  5,  cap. 
1. — Benzoni,  Novi  Orbis  Hist.,  cap.  14. 
Vol.  II.— 31  v 


482 


PROGRESS  OF  DISCOVERY. 


Ill 


existence  of  land  in  the  west.  I  have  opened  the  gate, 
and  others  may  enter  at  their  pleasure;  as  indeed  they 
do,  arrogating  to  themselves  the  title  of  discoverers,  to 
which  they  can  have  little  claim,  following  as  they  do 
in  my  track."  He  little  thought  the  ingratitude  of 
mankind  would  sanction  the  claims  of  these  adven- 
turers so  far  as  to  confer  the  name  of  one  of  them  on 
that  world  which  his  genius  had  revealed. ^^ 

The  great  inclination,  however,  which  the  admiral 
had  to  serve  the  Catholic  sovereigns,  and  especially  the 
most  serene  queen,  says  Ferdinand  Columbus,  induced 

38  It  would  be  going  out  of  our  way  to  investigate  the  pretensions 
of  Amerigo  Vespucci  to  the  honor  of  first  discovering  the  South  Amer- 
ican continent.  The  reader  will  find  them  displayed  with  perspicuity 
and  candor  by  Mr.  Irving,  in  his  "  Life  of  Columbus."  (Appendix, 
No.  9.)  Few  will  be  disposed  to  contest  the  author's  conclusion  re- 
specting their  fallacy,  though  all  may  not  have  the  same  charity  as  he, 
in  tracing  its  possible  origin  to  an  editorial  blunder  instead  of  wilful 
fabrication  on  the  part  of  Vespucci ;  in  which  light,  indeed,  it  seems 
to  have  been  regarded  by  the  two  most  ancient  and  honest  historians 
of  the  event.  Las  Casas  and  Herrera.  There  is  no  reason  to  suspect 
him,  however,  of  pretending  to  anything  beyond  the  discovery  of 
Paria,  or  of  anticipating  in  any  degree  the  important  consequence  des- 
tined to  result  from  such  pretensions.  Mr.  Irvirg's  conclusions  have 
since  been  confirmed,  in  the  fullest  manner,  by  M.  de  Humboldt,  in 
his  "  Geographic  du  nouveau  Continent,"  published  in  1839 ;  in  which 
he  has  assembled  a  mass  of  testimony  suggesting  the  most  favorable 
impressions  of  Vespucci's  innocence  of  the  various  charges  brought 
against  him. — Since  the  appearance  of  Mr.  Irving's  work,  Seiior  Na- 
varrete  has  published  the  third  volume  of  his  "  Coleccion  de  Viages 
y  Descubrimicntos,"  etc.,  containing,  among  other  things,  the  original 
letters  recording  Vespucci's  American  voyages,  illustrated  by  all  the 
authorities  and  facts  that  could  conic  within  the  scope  of  his  inde- 
fatigable researches.  The  whole  weight  of  evidence  leads  irresistibly 
to  the  conviction  that  Columbus  is  entited  to  the  glory  of  being  the 
original  discoverer  of  the  southern  continent,  as  well  as  islands,  of  the 
western  hemispliere.    Coleccion  de  Viages,  torn.  iii.  pp.  183-334. 


TREATMENT  OF  COLUMBUS. 


483 


him  to  lay  aside  his  scruples  and  encounter  the  perils 
and  fatigues  of  another  voyage.  A  few  weeks  before 
his  departure,  he  received  a  gracious  letter  from  Ferdi- 
nand and  Isabella,  the  last  ever  addressed  to  him  by 
his  royal  mistress,  assuring  him  of  their  purpose  to 
maintain  inviolate  all  their  engagements  with  him, 
and  to  perpetuate  the  inheritance  of  his  honors  in  his 
family.''  Comforted  and  cheered  by  these  assurances, 
the  veteran  navigator,  quitting  the  port  of  Cadiz  on 
the  9th  of  March,  1502,  once  more  spread  his  sails  for 
those  golden  regions  which  he  had  approached  so  near, 
but  was  destined  never  to  reach. 

It  will  not  be  necessary  to  pursue  his  course  further 
than  to  notice  a  single  occurrence  of  most  extraordi- 
nary nature.  The  admiral  had  received  instructions 
not  to  touch  at  Hispaniola  on  his  outward  voyage. 
The  leaky  condition  of  one  of  his  ships,  however,  and 
the  signs  of  an  approaching  storm,  induced  him  to 
seek  a  temporary  refuge  there;  at  the  same  time,  he 
counselled  Ovando  to  delay  for  a  few  days  the  de- 
parture of  the  fleet,  then  riding  in  the  harbor,  which 
was  destined  to  carry  Bobadilla  and  the  rebels  with 
their  ill-gotten  treasures  back  to  Spain.     The  churlish 

39  Fernando  Colon,  Hist,  del  Almirante,  cap.  87.  Herr'jra  notices 
this  letter,  written,  he  says,  "  con  tanta  humanidad,  que  parecia  ex- 
traordinaria  de  lo  que  usavan  con  otros,  y  no  sin  razon,  pues  jamas 
nadie  les  hizo  tal  servicio."  (Indias  occidentalcs,  lib.  5,  cap.  i.)^ 
Among  other  instances  of  the  queen's  personal  regard  for  Columbus, 
may  be  noticed  her  receiving  his  two  sons,  Diego  and  Fernando,  as 
her  own  pages,  on  the  death  of  Prince  John,  in  whose  service  they 
had  formerly  been.  (Navarrele,  Coleccion  dc  Viages,  torn,  ii.,  Doc. 
dipl.,  no.  125.) — By  an  ordinance  of  1503,  we  find  Diego  Colon  rriade 
coittino  of  the  royal  household,  with  an  annual  salary  of  50,000  mara- 
vcilis.     Ibid.,  Doc.  dipl.,  no.  150. 


i 


484 


PHOGKESS  OF  DISCOVERY. 


governor,  however,  not  only  refused  Columbus  admit- 
tance, but  gave  orders  for  the  instant  departure  of  the 
vessels.  The  apprehensions  of  the  experienced  mariner 
were  fully  justified  by  the  event.  Scarcely  had  the 
Spanish  fleet  quitted  its  moorings,  before  one  of  those 
tremendous  hurricanes  came  on,  which  so  often  desolate 
these  tropical  regions,  sweeping  down  everything  be- 
fore it,  and  fell  with  such  violence  on  the  little  navy 
that  out  of  eighteen  ships,  of  which  it  was  composed, 
not  more  than  three  or  four  escaped.  The  rest  all 
foundered,  including  those  which  contained  Bobadilla 
and  the  late  enemies  of  Columbus.  Two  hundred 
thousand  castellanos  of  gold,  half  of  which  belonged 
to  the  government,,  went  to  the  bottom  with  them. 
The  only  one  of  the  fleet  which  made  its  way  back 
to  Spain  was  a  crazy,  weather-beaten  bark,  which 
contained  the  admiral's  property,  amounting  to  four 
thousand  ounces  of  gold.  To  complete  these  curious 
coincidences,  Columbus  with  his  little  squadron  rode 
out  the  storm  in  safety  under  the  lee  of  the  island, 
where  he  had  prudently  taken  shelter  on  being  so 
rudely  repulsed  from  the  port.  This  even-handed 
retribution  of  justice,  so  uncommon  in  human  affairs, 
led  many  to  discern  the  immediate  interposition  of 
Providence.  Others,  in  a  less  Christian  temper,  referred 
it  all  to  the  necromancy  of  the  admiral.** 

♦>  Peter  Martyr,  De  Rebus  Oceanicis,  dec.  i,  lib.  10. — Garibay,  Coni- 
pendio,  torn,  ii,  lib.  19,  cap.  14. — Fernando  Colon,  Hist,  del  Almirante, 
cap.  88. — Benzoni,  Novi  Orbis  Hist.,  cap.  12. — Herrera,  Indias  occi- 
dentales,  lib.  5,  cap.  2. 


CHAPTER    IX. 


SPANISH   COLONIAL  POLICY. 


Careful  Provision  for  the  Colonies. — License  for  Private  Voyages.^ 
Important  Papal  Concessions. — The  Queen's  Zeal  for  Conversion. 
— Immediate  Profits  from  the  Discoveries. — Their  moral  Conse- 
quences.— Their  geographical  Extent. 

A  CONSIDERATION  of  the  coloiiial  policy  pursued 
during  Isabella's  lifetime  has  been  hitherto  deferred  to 
avoid  breaking  the  narrative  of  Columbus's  personal 
adventures.  I  shall  now  endeavor  to  present  the  reader 
with  a  brief  outline  of  it,  so  far  as  can  be  collected 
from  imperfect  and  scanty  materials ;  for,  however 
incomplete  in  itself,  it  becomes  important  as  contain- 
ing the  germ  of  the  gigantic  system  developed  in  later 
ages. 

Ferdinand  and  Isabella  manifested  from  the  first  an 
eager  and  enlightened  curiosity  in  reference  to  their 
new  acquisitions,  constantly  interrogating  the  admiral 
minutely  as  to  their  soil  and  climate,  their  various 
vegetable  and  mineral  products,  and  especially  the 
character  of  the  uncivilized  races  who  inhabited  them. 
They  paid  the  greatest  deference  to  his  suggestions, 
as  before  remarked,  and  liberally  supplied  the  infant 
settlement  with  whatever  could  contribute  to  its  nour- 
ishment  and   permanent   prosperity.*    Through  their 

»  See,  in  particular,  a  letter  to  Columbus,  dated  August,  1494  (apud 
Navarrete,  Coleccion  da  Viages,  torn,  ii.,  Doc.  dipl.,  no.  79) ;  also  an 

(485) 


486 


SPANISH  COLONIAL  POLICY. 


provident  attention,  in  a  very  few  years  after  its  dis- 
covery the  island  of  Hispaniola  was  in  possession  of 
the  most  important  domestic  animals,  as  well  as  fruits 
and  vegetables,  of  the  Old  World,  some  of  which  have 
since  continued  to  furnish  the  staple  of  a  far  more 
lucrative  commerce  than  was  ever  anticipated  from  its 
gold-mines.' 

Emigration  to  the  new  countries  was  encouraged  by 
the  liberal  tenor  of  the  royal  ordinances  passed  from 
time  to  time.  The  settlers  in  Hispaniola  were  to  have 
their  passage  free ;  to  be  excused  from  taxes ;  to  have 
the  absolute  property  of  such  plantations  on  the  island 
as  they  should  engage  to  cultivate  for  four  years ;  and 
they  were  furnished  with  a  gratuitous  supply  of  grain 
and  stock  for  their  farms.  All  exports  and  imports 
were  exempted  from  duty;  a  striking  contrast  to  the 
narrow  policy  of  later  ages.  Five  hundred  persons, 
including  scientific  men  and  artisans  of  every  descrip- 
tion, were  sent  out  and  maintained  at  the  expense  of 
government.  To  provide  for  the  greater  security  and 
quiet  of  the  island,  Ovando  was  authorized  to  gather 
the  residents  into  towns,  which  were  endowed  with  the 
privileges  appertaining  to  similar  corporations  in  the 
mother-  country;  and  a  number  of  married  men,  with 

elaborate  memorial  presented  by  the  admiral  in  the  same  year,  setting 
forth  tlie  various  necessities  of  the  colony,  every  item  of  which  is  par- 
ticularly answered  by  the  sovereigns,  in  a  manner  showing  how  at- 
tentively they  considered  his  suggestions. — Ibid.,  tom.  i.  yjp.  226-241. 
"  Abundant  evidence  of  this  is  furnished  by  the  long  enumeraticn 
of  articles  subjected  to  tithes,  contained  in  an  ordinance  dated  Oct>- 
ber  5th,  1501,  showing  with  what  indiscriminate  severity  this  heavy 
burden  was  imposed  from  the  first  on  the  most  important  products  of 
human  industry.  Recopilacion  de  Leyes  de  los  Reynos  de  las  Indias 
(Madrid,  1774),  torn.  i.  lib.  i,  tit.  16,  ley  2. 


SrAJV/S//  COLONIAL   POLICY. 


487 


their  families,  were  encouraged  to  establish  themselves 
in  them,  with  the  view  of  giving  greater  solidity  and 
permanence  to  the  settlement.' 

With  these  wise  provisions  were  mingled  others 
savoring  too  strongly  of  the  illiberal  spirit  of  the  age. 
Such  were  those  prohibiting  Jews,  Moors,  or  indeed 
any  but  Castilians,  for  whom  the  discovery  was  con- 
sidered exclusively  to  have  been  made,  from  inhabiting, 
or  even  visiting,  the  New  World.  The  government 
kept  a  most  jealous  eye  upon  what  it  regarded  as  its 
own  peculiar  perquisites,  reserving  to  itself  the  exclu- 
sive possession  of  all  minerals,  dyewoods,  and  precious 
stones  that  should  be  discovered ;  and,  although  pri- 
vate persons  were  allowed  to  search  for  gold,  they  were 
subjected  to  the  exorbitant  tax  of  two-thirds,  subse- 
quently reduced  to  one-fifth,  of  all  they  should  obtain, 
for  the  crown.* 

The  measure  which  contributed  more  effectually  than 
any  other,  at  this  period,  to  the  progress  of  discovery 
and  colonization,  was  the  license  granted,  under  cer- 
tain regulations,  in  1495,  for  voyages  undertaken  by 
private  individuals.  No  use  was  made  of  this  permis- 
sion until  some  years  later,  in  1499.  The  spirit  of 
enterprise  had  flagged,  and  the  nation  had  experienced 


3  Navariete,  Coleccion  de  Vinges,  loni.  ii.,  Doc.  dipl.,  no.  86,  April 
loth,  1495. — Nos.  103,  105-108,  April  23d,  1497.— No.  no,  Mny  6th, 
1497. — No.  121,  July  22d,  1497. — HeiTcra,  Indias  occidcntales,  dec.  i, 
lib.  4,  cap.  12. 

4  Navariete,  Coleccicn  de  Vinges,  torn,  ii..  Doc.  dipl.,  nos.  86,  121. — 
Herrera,  Indias  occidcntales,  lib.  3,  cap.  2. — Munoz,  Hist,  del  Nuevo- 
Mundo,  lib.  5,  sec.  34. — The  exclusion  of  foreigners,  at  least  all  but 
"  Catholic  Christians,"  is  particularly  recommended  by  Columbus  in 
his  first  communication  to  the  crown.     Primer  Viage  de  Colon. 


483 


SPANISH  COLONIAL   POLICY. 


something  like  clisa[)j)ointment  on  contrasting  the 
meagre  results  of  their  own  discoveries  with  the  daz- 
zling successes  of  the  Portuguese,  who  had  struck  at 
once  into  the  very  heart  of  the  jewelled  East.  The 
reports  of  the  admiral's  third  voyage,  however,  and 
the  beautiful  specimens  of  pearls  which  he  sent  home 
from  the  coast  of  Paria,  revived  the  cupidity  of  the 
nation.  Private  adventurers  now  proposed  to  avail 
themselves  of  the  license  already  granted,  and  to  fol- 
low up  the  track  of  discovery  on  their  own  account. 
The  government,  drained  by  its  late  heavy  expendi- 
tures, and  jealous  of  the  spirit  of  maritime  adventure 
beginning  to  show  itself  in  the  other  nations  of  Eu- 
rope,' willingly  accjuiesced  in  a  measure  which,  while 
it  opened  a  wide  field  of  enterprise  for  its  subjects, 
secured  to  itself  all  the  substantial  benefits  of  dis- 
covery, without  any  of  the  burdens. 

The  ships  fitted  out  under  the  general  license  were 
required  to  reserve  one-tenth  of  their  tonnage  for  the 
crown,  as  well  as  two-thirds  of  all  the  gold,  and  ten 
per  cent,  of  all  other  commodities  which  they  should 
procure.  The  government  promoted  these  expeditions 
by  a  bounty  on  all  vessels  of  six  hundred  tons  and 
ui)wards  engaged  in  them.* 

With  this  encouragement  the  more  wealthy  mer- 
chants of  Seville,  Cadiz,  and  Palos,  the  old  theatre 

5  Among  tlie  foreign  adventurers  were  the  two  Cabots,  who  sailed  in 
the  service  of  the  English  monarch,  Henry  VII.,  in  1497,  and  ran 
down  the  whole  coast  of  North  America,  from  Newfoundland  to  within 
a  few  degrees  of  Florida,  thus  encroaching,  as  it  were,  on  the  very 
field  of  discovery  preoccupied  by  the  Spaniards. 

6  Muiioz,  Hist,  del  Nuevo-Mundo,  lib.  5,  sect.  32. — Navarrete,  Co- 
Icccion  de  Viages,  Doc.  dipl.,  no.  86. 


SPANISH  COLONIAL  POLICY. 


489 


of  nautical  enterprise,  freighted  and  sent  out  little 
squadrons  of  three  or  four  vessels  each,  which  they 
intrusted  to  the  experienced  mariners  who  had  accom- 
panied Columbus  in  his  first  voyage,  or  since  followed 
in  his  footsteps.  They  held  in  general  the  same  course 
pursued  by  the  admiral  on  his  last  expedition,  explor- 
ing the  coasts  of  the  great  southern  continen*^  Some 
of  the  adventurers  returned  with  such  rich  freights  of 
gold,  pearls,  and  other  precious  commodities  as  well 
compensated  the  fatigues  and  perils  of  the  voyage. 
But  the  greater  number  were  obliged  to  content  them- 
selves with  the  more  enduring,  but  barren,  honors  of 
discovery.' 

The  active  spirit  of  enterprise  now  awakened,  and 

7  Columbus  seems  to  have  taken  exceptions  at  the  license  for  pri- 
vate voyages,  as  an  infringement  of  his  own  prerogatives.  It  is  ditU- 
cult,  however,  to  understand  on  what  ground.  There  is  nothing  in  his 
original  capitulations  with  the  government  having  reference  to  tlie 
matter  (see  Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Viages,  Doc.  dipl.,  no.  5) ;  while, 
in  the  letters  patent  made  out  previously  to  his  second  voyage,  the 
right  of  granting  licenses  is  expressly  reserved  to  the  crown,  and  to 
the  superintendent,  Fonseca,  equally  with  the  admiral.  (Doc.  dipl., 
no.  35.)  The  only  legal  claim  which  he  could  make  in  all  such  ex- 
pediticr.s  nc  were  not  conducted  under  him  was  to  one-eighth  of  the 
tonnage,  and  this  was  regularly  provided  for  in  tlie  general  license. 
(Doc.  dipl.,  no.  86.)  The  sovereigns,  indeed,  in  consequence  of  his 
remonstrances,  published  an  ordinance,  June  2d,  1497,  in  which,  after 
expressmg  their  unabated  respect  for  all  the  rights  and  privileges  of  the 
admiral,  they  declare  that  whatever  shall  be  found  in  their  previous 
license  repugnant  to  these  shall  be  null  and  void.  (Doc.  dipl.,  no.  113.) 
The  hypothetical  form  in  which  this  is  stated  shows  that  the  sover- 
eigns, with  an  honest  desire  of  keiping  their  engagements  with  Colum- 
bus, hd  not  a  very  clear  perception  in  what  manner  they  had  been 
violated.  Peter  Martyr,  De  Rebus  Oceanicis,  dec.  i,  lib.  9. — Herrera, 
Indias  occidentales,  lib.  4,  cap.  11. — Benzoni,  Novi  Orbis  Hist.,  cap. 
13. 

V* 


490 


SPAAJSII  COLONIAL   POLICY. 


the  more  enlarged  commercial  relations  with  the  new 
colonies,  required  a  more  perfect  organization  of  the 
tlepartment  for  Indian  affairs,  the  earliest  vestiges  of 
which  have  been  already  noticcil  in  a  preceding  chap- 
ter.^ By  an  ordinance  dated  at  Alcala,  January  20th, 
I503>  it  was  provided  that  a  board  should  be  estab- 
lished, consisting  of  three  functionaries,  with  the  titles 
of  treasurer,  factor,  and  comptroller.  Their  perma- 
nent residence  was  assigned  in  the  old  alcazar  of 
Seville,  where  they  were  to  meet  every  day  for  the 
despatch  of  business.  The  board  was  expected  to 
make  itself  thoroughly  acquainted  with  whatever  con- 
cerned the  colonies,  and  to  afford  the  government  all 
information  that  could  be  obtained  affecting  their  in- 
terests and  commercial  prosperity.  It  was  empowered 
to  grant  licenses  under  the  regular  conditions,  to  pro- 
vide for  the  equipment  of  fleets,  to  determine  their 
destination,  and  to  furnish  them  with  instructions  on 
sailing.  All  merchandise  for  exportation  was  to  be 
deposited  in  the  alcazar,  where  the  return  cargoes 
■were  to  be  received  and  contracts  made  for  their  sale. 
Similar  authority  was  given  to  it  over  the  trade  with 
the  Barbary  coast  and  the  Canary  Islands.  Its  super- 
vision was  to  extend  in  like  manner  over  all  vessels 
which  might  take  their  departure  from  the  port  of 
Cadiz,  as  well  as  from  Seville.  With  these  powers 
were  combined  others  of  a  purely  judicial  character, 
authorizing  it  to  take  cognizance  of  questions  arising 
out  of  particular  voyages,  and  of  the  colonial  trade  in 
general.     In  this  latter  capacity  it  was  to  be  assisted 


8  Part  I.  chap.  18,  of  this  History. 


SPANIS/I  COLONIAL   POLICY. 


491 


by  the  advice  of  two  jurists,  maintained  by  a  regular 
salary  from  the  government.' 

Such  were  the  extensive  i)0wers  intrusted  to  the 
famous  Casa  de  Coninitacion,  or  House  of  Trade,  on 
this  its  first  definite  organization ;  and,  although  its 
authority  was  subsequently  somewhat  circumscribed  by 
the  appellate  jurisdiction  of  the  Council  of  the  Indies, 
it  has  always  continued  the  great  organ  by  which  the 
commercial  transactions  with  the  colonies  have  been 
conducted  and  controlled. 

The  Spanish  government,  while  thus  securing  to 
itself  the  more  easy  and  exclusive  management  of  the 
colonial  trade,  by  confining  it  within  one  narrow 
channel,  discovered  the  most  admirable  foresight  in 
providing  for  its  absolute  supremacy  in  ecclesiastical 
affairs,  where  alone  it  could  be  contested.  By  a  bull 
of  Alexander  the  Sixth,  dated  November  i6th,  1501, 
the  sovereigns  were  empowered  to  receive  all  the 
tithes  in  the  colonial  dominions."*  Another  bull,  of 
Pope  Julius  the  Second,  July  28th,  1508,  granted  them 
the  right  of  collating  to  all  benefices,  of  whatever  de- 
scription, in  the  colonies,  subject  only  to  the  appro- 
bation of  the  Holy  See.  By  these  two  concessions, 
the  Spanish  crown  was  placed  at  once  at  the  head  of 


9  Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Viages,  torn,  ii.,  Doc.  dipl.,  no.  148. — So- 
lorzano  y  Pereyra,  Politica  Indiana  (Madrid,  1776),  lib.  6,  cap.  17. — 
Linage  de  Veitia,  Norte  de  la  Contratacion  de  las  Indias  occiden tales 
(Sevilla,  1672),  lib.  i,  cap.  i. — Zuiiiga,  Annales  de  Sevilla,  ano  1503. 
— Herrera,  Indias  occidentales,  lib.  5,  cap.  12. — Navagiero,  Viaggio, 
fol.  IS. 

»o  See  the  original  bull,  apud  Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Viages,  torn, 
ii.  apend.  14,  and  a  Spanish  version  of  it,  in  Solorzano,  Politica  Indi- 


ana, lib. 


4,  cap.  J,  sec.  7. 


492 


SPANISH  COLONIAL  POLICY. 


the  church  in  its  transatlantic  dominions,  with  the  abso- 
Uite  disposal  of  all  its  dignities  and  emoluments." 

It  has  excited  the  admiration  of  more  than  one  histo- 
rian, that  Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  with  their  reverence 
for  the  Catholic  church,  should  have  had  the  courage 
to  assume  an  attitude  of  such  entire  independence  of 
its  spiritual  chief."  But  whoever  has  studied  their 
reign  will  regard  this  measure  as  perfectly  conform- 
able to  their  habitual  policy,  which  never  suffered  a 
zeal  for  religion,  or  a  blind  deference  to  the  church, 
to  compromise  in  any  degree  the  independence  of  the 
crown.  It  is  much  more  astonishing  that  pontiffs 
could  be  found  content  to  divest  themselves  of  such 
important  prerogatives.  It  was  deviating  widely  from 
the  subtle  and  tenacious  spirit  of  their  predecessors, 
and,  as  the  consequences  came  to  be  more  fully  dis- 
closed, furnished  ample  subject  of  regret  to  those  who 
succeeded  them. 

Such  is  a  brief  summary  of  the  principal  regulations 
adopted  by  Ferdinand  and  Isabella  for  the  adminis- 
tration of  the  colonies.  Many  of  their  peculiarities, 
including  most  of  their  defects,  are  to  be  referred  to 
the  peculiar  circumstances  under  which  the  discovery 
of  the  New  World  was  effected.  Unlike  the  settle- 
ments on  the  comparatively  sterile  shores  of  North 
America,  which  were  permitted  to  devise  laws  accom- 
modated to  their  necessities,  and  to  gather  strength  in 
the  habitual  exercise  of  political  functions,  the  Spanish 

"  Solorzano,  Politica  Indiana,  torn.  ii.  lib.  4,  cap.  2,  sec.  9. — Riol, 
Informe,  apud  Semanario  erudito,  torn.  iii.  pp.  160,  161. 

"  Among  others,  see  Raynal.  History  of  the  East  and  West  Indies, 
translated  by  Justamond  (London,  1788),  vol.  iv.  p.  277. — Robertson, 
History  of  America  (London,  1796),  vol.  iii.  p.  283.  • 


SPAMSH  COLONIAL   POLICY. 


493 


colonies  were  from  the  very  first  checked  and  con- 
trolled by  the  over-legislation  of  the  parent  country. 
The  original  project  of  discovery  had  been  entered 
into  with  indefinite  expectations  of  gain.  The  verifi- 
cation of  Columbus's  theory  of  the  existence  of  land 
in  the  west  gave  popular  credit  to  his  conjecture  that 
that  land  was  the  far-famed  Indies.  The  specimens 
of  gold  and  other  precious  commodities  found  there 
served  to  maintain  the  delusion.  The  Spanish  gov- 
ernment regarded  the  expedition  as  its  own  private 
adventure,  to  whose  benefits  it  had  exclusive  preten- 
sions. Hence  those  jealous  regulations  for  securing 
to  itself  a  monopoly  of  the  most  obvious  sources  of 
profit,  the  dyewoods  and  the  precious  metals. 

These  impolitic  provisions  were  relieved  by  others 
better  suited  to  the  permanent  interests  of  the  colony. 
Such  was  the  bounty  offered  in  various  ways  on  the 
occupation  and  culture  of  land,  the  erection  of  mu- 
nicipalities, the  right  of  intercolonial  traffic,  and  of 
exporting  and  importing  merchandise  of  every  descrip- 
tion free  of  duty.'^  These  and  similar  laws  show  that 
the  government,  far  from  regarding  the  colonies  merely 
as  a  foreign  acquisition  to  be  sacrificed  to  the  interests 
of  the  mother  country,  as  at  a  later  period,  was  dis- 
posed to  legislate  for  them  on  more  generous  principles, 
as  an  integral  portion  of  the  monarchy. 

Some  of  the  measures  even  of  a  less  liberal  tenor 
may  be  excused,  as  sufficiently  accommodated  to  exist- 
ing circumstances.     No  regulation,  for  example,  was 

'3  Mufioz,  Hist,  del  Nuevo-Mundo,  lib.  s,  sec.  32,  33. — Heirera,  In- 
dias  occidentales,  lib.  4,  cap.  11, 12. — Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Viages, 
toni.  ii.,  Doc.  dipl.,  no.  86. 


494 


SPANISH  COLONIAL   POLICY. 


found  eventually  more  mischievous  in  its  operation 
than  that  which  confined  the  colonial  trade  to  the 
single  port  of  Seville,  instead  of  permitting  it  to  find 
a  free  vent  in  the  thousand  avenues  naturally  opened 
in  every  part  of  the  kingdom ;  to  say  nothing  of  the 
grievous  monopolies  and  exactions  for  which  this  con- 
centration of  a  mighty  tiaffic  on  so  small  a  point  was 
found,  in  later  times,  to  afford  unbounded  facility.  But 
the  colonial  trade  was  too  limited  in  its  extent  under 
Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  to  involve  such  consequences. 
It  was  confined  chiefly  to  a  few  wealthy  seaports  of 
Andalusia,  from  the  vicinity  of  which  the  first  adven- 
turers had  sallied  forth  or  t.,  ir  career  of  discovery.  It 
was  no  inconvenience  to  i>  )  have  a  common  port 
of  entry,  so  central  and  t:  .  ,^jible  as  Seville,  which, 
moreover,  by  this  arrangement  became  a  great  mart  for 
European  trade,  thus  affording  a  convenient  market  to 
the  country  for  effecting  its  commercial  exchanges  with 
every  quarter  of  Christendom.'*  It  was  only  when  laws 
adapted  to  the  incipient  stages  of  commerce  were  perpet- 
uated to  a  period  when  that  commerce  had  swelled  to 
such  gigantic  dimensions  as  to  embrace  every  quarter  of 
the  empire,  that  their  gross  impolicy  became  manifest. 
It  would  not  be  giving  a  fair  view  of  the  great 
objects  proposed  by  the  Spanish  sovereigns  in  their 
schemes  of  discovery,  to  omit  one  which  was  para- 
mount to  all  the  rest,  with  the  queen  at  least,  —  the 
propagation  of  Christianity  among  the  heathen.     The 


H  The  historian  of  Seville  mentions  that  it  was  the  resort  especially 
of  the  merchants  of  Flanders,  with  whom  a  more  intimate  intercourse 
had  been  opened  by  the  intermarriages  of  the  royal  family  with  the 
house  of  Burgundy.    See  Zuniga,  Annales  de  Sevilla,  p.  415. 


SPANISH  COLONIAL   POLICY. 


495 


conversion  and  civilization  of  this  simple  people  form, 
as  has  been  already  said,  the  burden  of  most  of  her 
ofificial  communicaticns  from  the  (  '  "liest  period.''  She 
neglected  no  means  for  the  furtherance  of  this  good 
work,  through  the  agency  of  missionaries  exclusively 
devoted  to  it,  who  were  to  establish  their  residence 
among  the  natives  and  win  them  to  the  true  faith  by 
their  instructions  and  the  edifying  example  of  their 
own  lives.  It  was  with  the  design  of  ameliorating  the 
condition  of  the  natives  that  she  sanctioned  the  intro- 
duction into  the  colonies  of  negro  slaves  born  in  Spain; 
(1501.)  This  she  did  on  the  representation  that  the 
physical  constitution  of  the  African  was  much  better 
fitted  than  that  of  the  Indian  to  endure  severe  toil 
under  a  tropical  climate.  To  this  false  principle  of 
economizing  human  suffering  we  are  indebted  for  that 
foul  stain  on  the  New  World,  which  has  grown  deeper 
and  darker  with  the  lapse  of  years. '^ 

'S  Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Viages,  torn,  ii.,  Doc.  dipl.,  no.  45,  et  loc. 
al. — Las  Casas,  amidst  his  unsparing  condemnation  of  the  guilty,  does 
ample  justice  to  the  pure  and  generous,  though,  alas  1  unavailing 
efforts  of  the  queen.  See  CEuvres,  ed.  de  Llorentc,  torn.  1.  pp.  21,  307, 
395,  et  alibi. 

•6  Herrera,  Indias  occldentales,  lib.  4,  cap.  12. — A  good  account  of 
the  introduction  of  negro  slavery  into  the  New  World,  comprehend- 
ing the  material  facts,  and  some  little  known,  m.ay  be  found  in  the 
fifth  chapter  of  Bancroft's  "  History  of  the  United  States ;"  a  work  in 
which  the  author  has  shown  singular  address  in  creating  a  unity  of 
interest  out  of  a  subject  whi''.h,  in  its  early  stages,  would  seem  to  want 
every  other  unity.  It  is  the  deficiency  of  this,  probably,  which  has 
prevented  Mr.  Grahame's  valuable  History  from  attaining  the  popu- 
larity to  which  its  solid  merits  justly  entitle  it.  Should  the  remaining 
volumes  of  Mr.  Bancroft's  work  be  conducted  with  the  same  spirit, 
scholarship,  and  impartiality  as  the  volume  before  us,  it  cannot  fail  to 
take  a  pcrmmcnt  rank  in  .American  literature. 


496 


SPANISH  COLONIAL   POLICY. 


Isabella,  however,  was  destined  to  have  her  benevo- 
lent designs  in  regard  to  the  natives  defeated  by  her 
own  subjects.  The  popular  doctrine  of  the  absolute 
rights  of  the  Christian  over  the  heathen  seemed  to 
warrant  the  exaction  of  labor  from  these  unhappy 
beings  to  any  degree  which  avarice  on  the  one  hand 
could  demand,  or  human  endurance  concede  on  the 
other.  The  device  of  the  repartimientos  systematized 
and  completed  the  whole  scheme  of  oppression.  The 
queen,  it  is  true,  abolished  them  under  Ovando's  ad- 
ministration, and  declared  the  Indians  **as  free  as  her 
own  subjects."*'  But  his  representation  that  the  In- 
dians, when  no  longer  compelled  to  work,  withdrew 
from  all  intercourse  with  the  Christians,  thus  annihi- 
lating at  once  all  hopes  of  their  conversion,  subse- 
quently induced  her  to  consent  that  they  should  be 
required  to  labor  moderately  and  for  a  reasonable 
compensation.''  This  was  construed  with  their  usual 
latitude  by  the  Spaniards.  They  soon  revived  the  old 
system  of  distribution  on  so  terrific  a  scale  that  a  letter 
of  Columbus,  written  shortly  after  Isabella's  death, 
represents  more  than  six-sevenths  of  the  whole  popu- 
lation of  Hispaniola  to  have  melted  away  under  itP' 

'7  Herrera,  Indias  occidentales,  lib.  4,  cap.  11. 

'8  Dec.  20th,  1503. — Ibid.,  lib.  5,  cap.  ii. — See  the  instructions  to 
Ovando  in  Navarrete  (Coleccion  de  Viages,  torn,  ii.,  Doc.  dipl.,  no. 
153).  "  Pay  them  regular  wages,"  says  the  ordinance, "  for  their  labor," 
"  como  personas  libres  como  lo  son,  y  no  como  siervos."  Las  Casas, 
who  analyzes  these  instructions,  which  Llorente,  by-the-by,  has  mis- 
dated, exposes  the  atrocious  manner  in  which  they  were  violated,  in 
every  particular,  by  Ovando  and  his  successors.  CEuvres,  ed.  de 
IJorente,  torn.  i.  p.  309  et  seq. 

'9  Ibid.,  ubi  supra. — Las  Casas,  Hist.  Ind.,  lib.  2,  cap.  36,  MS.,  apud 
Irving,  vol.  iii.  p.  412, — The  venerable  bishop  confirms  this  frightful 


SPANISH  COLONIAL   POLICY. 


497 


The  queen  was  too  far  removed  to  enforce  the  execu- 
tion of  her  own  beneficent  measures ;  nor  is  it  probable 
that  she  ever  imagined  the  extent  of  their  violation, 
for  there  was  no  intrepid  philanthropist,  in  that  day, 
like  Las  Casas,  to  proclaim  to  the  world  the  wrongs 
and  sorrows  of  the  Indian."  A  conviction,  however, 
of  the  unworthy  treatment  of  the  natives  seems  to 
have  pressed  heavily  on  her  heart ;  for  in  a  codicil  to 
her  testament,  dated  a  few  days  only  before  her  death, 
she  invokes  the  kind  offices  of  her  successor  in  their 
behalf  in  such  strong  and  affectionate  language  as 
jilainly  indicates  how  intently  her  thoughts  were  occu- 
pied with  their  condition  down  to  the  last  hour  of  her 
existence." 

The  moral  grandeur  of  the  maritime  discoveries 
under  this  reign  must  not  so  far  dazzle  us  as  to  lead 
to  a  very  high  estimate  of  their  immediate  results  in 
an  economical  view.  Most  of  those  articles  which 
have  since  formed  the  great  staples  of  South  American 
commerce,  as  cocoa,  indigo,  cochineal,  tobacco,  etc., 
were  either  not  known  in  Isabella's  time,  or  not  culti- 


picture  of  desolation,  in  its  full  extent,  in  his  varioas  memorials  pre- 
pared for  the  Council  of  the  Indies.  QEuvres,  ed.  de  Llorente,  torn,  i., 
passim. 

«>  I^as  Casas  made  his  first  voyage  to  the  Indies,  it  is  true,  in  1498, 
or  at  latest  1502 ;  but  there  is  no  trace  of  his  taking  an  active  part 
in  denouncing  the  oppressions  of  the  Spaniards  earlier  than  1510, 
when  he  combined  his  efforts  with  those  of  the  Dominican  missiona- 
ries lately  arrived  in  St.  Domingo,  in  the  same  good  worlc.  It  was  not 
until  some  years  later,  1515,  that  he  returned  to  Spain  and  pleaded 
the  cause  of  the  injured  natives  before  the  throne.  Llorente,  QLuvrea 
de  I..as  Casas,  torn.  i.  pp.  1-23. — Nic.  Antonio,  Bibliotheca  Nova,  torn, 
i.  pp.  191,  192. 

«  See  the  will,  apud  Dormer,  Discursos  varios,  p.  381. 
Vol.  II.— 32 


498 


SPANISH  COLONIAL  POLICY. 


vated  for  exportation.  Small  quantities  of  cotton  had 
been  brought  to  Spain,  but  it  was  doubted  whether  the 
profit  would  compensate  the  expense  of  raising  it. 
The  sugar-cane  had  been  transplanted  into  Hispaniola, 
and  thrived  luxuriantly  in  its  genial  soil.  But  it  re- 
quired time  to  grow  it  to  any  considerable  amount  as 
an  article  of  commerce;  and  this  was  still  further 
delayed  by  the  distractions  as  well  as  avarice  of  the 
colony,  which  grasped  at  nothing  less  substantial  than 
gold  itself  The  only  vegetable  product  extensively 
used  in  trade  was  the  brazil-wood,  whose  beautiful 
dye  and  application  to  various  ornamental  purposes 
made  it,  from  the  first,  one  of  the  most  important 
monopolies  of  the  crown. 

The  accounts  are  too  vague  to  afford  any  probable 
estimate  of  the  precious  metals  obtained  from  the  new 
territories  previous  to  Ovando's  mission.  Before  the 
discovery  of  the  mines  of  Hayna  it  was  certainly  very 
inconsiderable.  The  size  of  some  of  the  specimens 
of  ore  found  there  would  suggest  magnificent  ideas  of 
their  opulence.  One  piece  of  gold  is  reported  by  the 
contemporary  historians  to  have  weighed  three  thou- 
sand two  hundred  castellanos,  and  to  have  been  so 
large  that  the  Spaniards  served  up  a  roasted  pig  on  it, 
'  oas«^ing  that  no  potentate  in  Europe  could  dine  off  so 
c  %tly  a  dish.""  The  admiral's  own  statement,  that  the 
mil.  ^s  obtained  from  six  gold  castellanos  to  one  hun- 
dred oi  c  'en  two  hundred  and  fifty  in  a  day,  allows  a 


3 


"  Henera,  Indias  occiclentales,  lib,  5,  cap.  i. — Fernando  Colon, 
Hist,  del  Almirante,  cap.  84. — Oviedo,  Relacion  sumaria  de  la  Historia 
natural  de  las  Xndias,  cap.  84,  apud  Barcia,  Historiadores  primitives, 
tun),  i. 


SPANISH  COLONIAL  POLICY. 


♦99 


latitude  too  great  to  lead  to  any  definite  conclusion. "^ 
More  tangible  evidence  of  the  riches  of  the  island  is 
afford-d  by  the  fact  that  two  hundred  thousand  castella- 
nos  cf  gold  went  down  in  the  ships  with  Bobadilla. 
But  this,  it  must  be  remembered,  was  the  fruit  of 
gigantic  efforts,  continued,  under  a  system  of  unex- 
ampled oppression,  for  more  than  two  years.  To  this 
testimony  might  be  added  that  of  the  well-informed 
historian  of  Seville,  who  infeis  from  several  royal 
ordinances  that  the  influx  of  the  precious  metals  had 
been  such,  before  the  close  of  the  fifteenth  century,  as 
to  aff"cct  the  value  of  the  currency  and  the  regular 
prices  of  commodities.**  These  large  estimates,  how- 
ever, are  scarcely  reconcilable  with  the  popular  dis- 
content at  the  meagreness  of  the  returns  obtained 
from  the  New  World,  or  with  the  assertion  of  Bernal- 
dez,  of  the  same  date  with  Zuniga's  reference,  that 
"so  little  gold  had  been  brought  home  as  to  raise 
a  general  belief  that  there  was  scarcely  any  in  the 
island."  "s  This  is  still  further  confirmed  by  the  fre- 
quent representations  of  contemporary  writers,  that 
the   expenses  of  the   colonies   considerably  exceeded 

»3  Tercer  Viage  de  Colon,  apud  Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Viages, 
torn,  i.  p.  274. 

84  Zuniga,  Annales  de  Sevilla,  p.  415. — The  alteration  was  in  the 
gold  currency ;  whicli  continued  to  rise  in  value  till  1497,  when  it 
gradually  sunk,  in  consequence  of  the  importation  from  the  mines  of 
Hispaniola.  Clemencin  has  given  its  relative  value  as  compared  with 
silver,  for  several  different  years ;  and  the  year  he  assigns  for  the  com- 
mencement of  its  depreciation  is  precisely  the  same  with  that  indicated 
by  Zuniga.  (Mem.  de  la  Acad,  de  Hist.,  torn.  vi.  Ilust.  20.)  The 
value  of  silver  was  not  materially  affected  till  the  discovery  of  the  great 
mines  pf  Potosi  and  Zacatecas. 

85  Bernaldez,  Reyes  Catolicos,  MS.,  cap.  131. 


500 


SPANISH  COLONIAL   POLICY. 


the  profits,  and  may  account  for  the  very  limited  scale 
on  which  the  Spanish  government,  at  no  time  blind  to 
its  own  interests,  pursued  its  schemes  c^  'iscovery,  as 
compared  with  its  Portuguese  neighbor  vvho  followed 
up  theirs  with  a  magnificent  apparatus  of  fleets  and 
armies,  that  could  have  been  supported  only  by  the 
teeming  treasures  of  the  Indies."* 

While  the  colonial  commerce  failed  to  produce  im- 
mediately the  splendid  returns  which  were  expected,  it 
was  generally  believed  to  have  introduced  a  physical 
evil  into  Europe,  which,  in  the  language  of  an  eminent 
writer,  **  more  than  counterbalanced  all  the  benefits 
that  resulted  from  the  discovery  of  the  New  World."  I 
allude  to  the  loathsome  disease  which  Heaven  has  sent 
as  the  severest  scourge  of  licentious  intercourse  between 
the  sexes;  and  which  broke  out  with  all  the  virulence 

=*  The  estimates  in  the  text,  it  will  be  noticed,  apply  only  to  the 
period  antecedent  to  Ovando's  administration,  in  1502.  The  opera- 
tions under  him  were  conducted  on  a  far  more  extensive  and  efficient 
plan.  The  system  of  repartimientos  being  revived,  the  whole  physical 
force  of  the  island,  aided  by  the  best  mechanical  apparatus,  was  em- 
ployed in  extorting  from  the  soil  all  its  hidden  stores  of  wealth.  The 
success  was  such  that  in  1506,  within  two  years  after  Isabella's  death, 
the  four  founderies  established  in  the  island  yielded  an  annual  amount, 
according  to  Herrera,  of  450,000  ounces  of  gold.  It  must  be  remarked, 
however,  that  one-fifth  only  of  the  gross  sum  obtained  from  the  mines 
was  at  that  time  paid  to  the  crown.  It  is  a  proof  how  far  these  returns 
exceeded  the  expectations  at  the  time  of  Ovando's  appointment,  that 
the  person  then  sent  out  as  marker  of  the  gold  was  to  receive,  as  a 
reasonable  compensation,  one  per  cent,  of  all  the  gold  assayed.  The 
perquisite,  however,  was  found  to  be  so  excessive  that  the  functionary 
was  recalled  and  a  new  arrangement  made  with  his  successor.  (See 
Herrera,  Indias  occidentals,  dec.  1,  lib.  6,  cap.  18.)  When  Navagiero 
visited  Seville,  in  1520,  the  royal  fifth  of  the  gold  which  passed 
through  the  mints  amounted  to  about  loo.ooo  ducats  annually. 
Viaggio,  fol.  15. 


SPANISH  COLONIAL   POLICY. 


501 


of  an  epidemic  in  almost  every  quarter  of  Europe,  in 
a  very  short  time  after  the  discovery  of  America.  The 
coincidence  of  these  two  events  led  to  the  popular 
belief  of  their  connection  with  each  other,  though  it 
derived  little  support  from  any  other  circumstance. 
The  expedition  of  Charles  the  Eighth  against  Naples, 
which  brought  the  Splaniards,  soon  after,  in  immediate 
contact  with  the  various  nations  of  Christendom,  sug- 
gested a  plausible  medium  for  the  rapid  communica- 
tion cf  the  disorder ;  and  this  theory  of  its  origin  and 
transmission,  gaining  credit  with  time,  which  made  it 
more  difficult  to  be  refuted,  has  passed  with  little  ex- 
amination from  the  mouth  of  one  historian  to  another 
to  the  present  day. 

The  extremely  brief  interval  which  elapsed  between 
the  return  of  Columbus  and  the  simultaneous  appear- 
ance of  the  disorder  at  the  most  distant  points  of 
Europe  long  since  suggested  a  reasonable  distrust  of 
the  correctness  of  the  hypothesis;  and  an  American, 
naturally  desirous  of  relieving  his  own  country  from 
so  melancholy  a  reproach,  may  feel  satisfaction  that 
the  more  searching  and  judicious  criticism  of  our  own 
day  has  at  length  established  beyond  a  doubt  that  the 
disease,  far  from  originating  in  the  New  World,  was 
never  known  there  till  introduced  by  Europeans.'' 

»7  The  curious  reader  is  particularly  referred  to  a  late  work,  entitled 
Lettere  sulla  Storia  de  Mali  Venerei,  di  Domenico  Thiene,  Venezia, 
1823 ;  for  the  knowledge  and  loan  of  which  I  am  indebted  to  my 
friend,  Dr.  Walter  Channing.  In  this  work  the  author  has  assembled 
all  the  early  notices  of  the  disease  of  any  authority,  and  discussed 
their  import  with  great  integrity  and  judgment.  The  following  posi- 
tions may  be  considered  as  established  by  his  researches,  i.  That 
neither  Columbus  nor  his  son,  in  their  copious  narratives  and  corre- 


502 


SPANISH  COLONIAL  POLICY. 


Whatever  be  the  amount  of  physical  good  or  evil 
immediately  resulting  to  Spain  from  her  new  discov- 

spondence.  alludes  in  any  way  to  the  existence  of  such  a  disease  In  the 
New  World.  I  must  add  that  an  examination  of  the  original  docu- 
ments published  by  Navarrete  since  the  date  of  Dr.  Thiene's  work 
fully  confirms  this  statement,  a.  That  among  the  frequent  notices  of 
the  disease,  during  the  twenty-five  years  immediately  following  the  dis- 
covery of  America,  there  is  not  a  single  intimation  of  its  having  been 
brought  from  that  country  ;  but,  on  the  contrary,  a  uniform  derivation 
of  it  from  some  other  source,  generally  France.  3.  That  the  disorder 
was  known  and  circumstantially  described  previous  to  the  expedition 
of  Charles  VIII.,  and  of  course  could  not  have  been  introduced  by  the 
Spaniards  in  that  way,  as  vulgarly  supposed.  4.  That  vsuious  con- 
temporary authors  trace  its  existence  in  a  variety  of  countries,  as  far 
back  as  1493,  and  the  beginning  of  1494,  showing  a  rapidity  and 
extent  of  diffusion  perfectly  irreconcilable  with  its  importation  by  Co- 
lumbus in  1493.  5.  Lastly,  that  it  was  not  till  after  the  close  of  Ferdi- 
nand and  Isabella's  reigns  that  the  first  work  appeared  affecting  to 
trace  the  origin  of  the  disease  to  America ;  and  this,  published  1517, 
was  the  production  not  of  a  Spaniard,  but  a  foreigner.  A  letter  of 
Peter  Martyr  to  the  learned  Portuguese  Arias  Barbosa,  professor  of 
Greek  at  Salamanca,  noticing  the  symptoms  of  the  disease  in  the  most 
unequivocal  manner,  will  settle  at  once  this  much-vexed  question,  if 
we  can  rely  on  the  genuineness  of  the  date,  the  5th  of  April,  1488, 
about  five  years  before  the  return  of  Columbus.  Dr.  Thiene,  how- 
ever, rejects  the  date  as  apocryphal,  on  the  ground:  i.  That  the  name 
of  "  morbus  Gallicus,"  given  to  the  disease  by  Martyr,  was  not  in  use 
till  after  the  French  invasion,  in  1494.  2.  That  the  superscription  of 
Greek  professor  at  Salamanca  was  premature,  as  no  such  professorship 
existed  there  till  1508.  As  to  the  first  of  these  objections,  it  may  be 
remarked  that  there  is  but  one  author  prior  to  the  French  invasion 
who  notices  the  disease  at  all.  He  derives  it  from  Gaul,  though  not 
giving  it  the  technical  appellation  of  morbus  Gallicus  ;  and  Martyr,  it 
may  be  observed,  far  from  confining  himself  to  this,  alludes  to  one  or 
two  other  names,  showing  that  its  title  was  then  quite  undetermined. 
In  regard  to  the  second  objection,  Dr.  Thiene  does  not  cite  his  au- 
thority for  limiting  the  introduction  of  Greek  at  Salamanca  to  1508. 
He  may  have  found  a  plausible  one  in  the  account  of  that  university 
compiled  by  one  of  its  officers,  Pedro  Chacon,  in  1569,  inserted  in  the 


SPANISH  COLONIAL  POL  ICY. 


503 


eries,  their  moral  consequences  were  inestimable.  The 
ancient  limits  of  human  thought  and  action  were  over- 
leaped ;  the  veil  which  had  covered  the  secrets  of  the 
deep  for  so  many  centuries  was  removed ;  another 
hemisphere  was  thrown  open  ;  and  a  boundless  ex- 
pansion promised  to  science,  from  the  infinite  varieties 
in  which  nature  was  exhibited  in  these  unexplored 
regions.  The  success  of  the  Spaniards  kindled  a  gen- 
erous emulation  in  their  Portuguese  rivals,  who  soon 
after  accomplished  their  long-sought  passage  into  the 
Indian  seas,  and  thus  completed  the  great  circle  of 
maritime  discovery."*    It  would  seem  as  if  Providence 

eighteenth  volume  of  the  Semanario  erudito  (Madrid,  1789).  The 
accuracy  of  the  writer's  chronology,  however,  may  well  be  doubted 
from  a  gross  anachronism  on  the  same  page  with  the  date  referred  to, 
wliere  he  speaks  of  Queen  Joanna  as  inheriting  the  crown  in  1512. 
(Hist,  de  la  Universidad  de  Salamanca,  p.  55.)  Waiving  this,  how- 
ever, the  fact  of  Barbosa  being  Greek  professor  at  Salamanca  in  1488 
is  directly  intimated  by  his  pupil  the  celebrated  Andrew  Rcsendi. 
"  Arias  Lusitanus,"  says  he,  "  quadraginta,  et  eo  plus  annos  Salaman- 
ticoe  tum  Latinas  litteras,  turn  Gr^cas,  magna  cum  laude  professus  est." 
(Responsio  ad  Quevcdum,  apud  Barbosa,  Bibliotheca  Lusitana,  tom. 
I.  P-  77-)  Now,  as  Barbosa,  by  general  consent,  passed  several  years 
in  his  native  country,  Portugal,  before  his  death  in  1530,  this  assertion 
of  Resendi  necessarily  places  him  at  Salamanca  in  the  situation  of 
Greek  instructor  some  time  before  the  date  of  Martyr's  letter,  it  may 
be  added,  indeed,  that  Nic.  Antonio,  than  whom  a  more  conpetont 
critic  could  not  be  found,  so  far  from  suspecting  the  date  of  the  letter, 
cites  it  as  settling  the  period  when  Barbosa  filled  the  Greek  chair  at 
Salamanca.  (See  Bibliotheca  Nova,  tom.  i.  p.  170.)  Martyr's  epistle, 
if  we  admit  the  genuineness  of  the  date,  must  dispose  at  once  of  the 
whole  question  of  the  American  origin  of  the  venereal  disease.  But 
as  this  question  is  determined  quite  as  conclusively,  though  not  so 
summarily,  by  the  accumulated  evidence  from  other  sources,  the  reader 
will  probably  think  the  matter  not  worth  so  much  discussion. 
*  This  event  occurred  in  1497,  Vasco  da  Gama  doubling  the  Cape 


504 


SPANISH  COLONIAL  POLICY. 


had  postponed  this  grand  event  until  the  possession 
of  America,  with  its  stores  of  precious  metals,  might 
supply  such  materials  for  a  commerce  with  the  East  as 
should  bind  together  the  most  distant  quarters  of  the 
globe.  The  impression  made  on  the  enlightened  minds 
of  that  day  is  evinced  by  the  tone  of  gratitude  and 
exultation  in  which  they  indulge  at  being  permitted 
to  witness  the  consummation  of  these  glorious  events, 
which  their  fathers  had  so  long,  but  in  vain,  desired 
to  see."» 

The  discoveries  of  Columbus  occurred  most  oppor- 
tunely for  the  Spanish  nation,  at  the  moment  when  it 
was  released  from  the  tumultuous  struggle  in  which  it 
had  been  engaged  for  so  many  years  with  the  Moslems. 
The  severe  schooling  of  these  wars  had  prepared  it  for 
entering  on  a  bolder  theatre  of  action,  whose  stirring 
and  romantic  perils  raised  still  higher  the  chivalrous 
spirit  of  the  people.  The  operation  of  this  spirit  was 
shown  in  the  alacrity  with  which  private  adventurers 
embarked  in  expeditions  to  the  New  World,  under 
cover  of  the  general  license,  during  the  last  two  years 
of  this  century.  Their  efforts,  combined  with  those 
of  Columbus,  extended  the  range  of  discovery  from  its 
original  limits,  twenty-four  degrees  of  north  latitude, 
to  probably  more  than  fifteen  south,  comprehending 
some  of  the  most  important  territories  in  the  western 
hemisphere.  Before  the  end  of  1500,  the  principal 
groups  of  the  West  Indian  islands  had  been  visited, 


of  Good  Hope,  November  20th,  in  that  year,  and  reaching  Calicut  !n 
the  following  May,  1498.     La  C16de,  Hist,  de  Portugal,  torn.  iii.  pp. 
104-109. 
=9  See,  among  others,  Peter  Martyr,  Opus  Epist.,  epist.  181. 


SPANISH  COLONIAL   POLICY. 


50s 


and  the  whole  extent  of  the  southern  continent  coasted, 
from  the  Bay  of  Honduras  to  Cape  St.  Augustine.  One 
adventurous  mariner,  indeed,  named  Lcpe,  iKMictrated 
several  degrees  south  of  this,  to  a  point  not  reached 
by  any  other  voyager  for  ten  or  twelve  years  after. 
A  great  part  of  Brazil  was  embraced  in  this  extent, 
and  two  successive  Castilian  navigators  landed  and 
took  formal  possession  of  it  for  the  crown  of  Castile, 
previous  to  its  reputed  discovery  by  the  Portuguese 
Cabral  \^  although  the  claims  to  it  were  subsequently 
relinc;  ished  by  the  Spanish  government,  conformably 
to  tl  ,  famous  line  of  demarcation  established  by  the 
tre  tty  of  Tirdesillas.^ 


*»  Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Vi.nges,  torn.  iii.  pp.  18-26. — Cabral's 
pretensions  to  the  discov  ry  :f  Brazil  appear  not  to  have  been  doubted 
until  recently.     They  are  f  uiciioned  both  by  Robertson  and  Raynal. 

3»  The  Portuguese  court  formed,  probably,  no  very  accurate  idea  of 
the  geographical  position  of  Brazil.  King  Emanuel,  in  a  letter  to  the 
Spanish  sovereigns  acc|uainting  them  with  Cabral's  voyage,  speaks 
of  the  newly-discovered  region  as  not  only  convenient,  but  necessaryt 
for  the  navigation  to  India.  (See  the  letter,  apud  Navarrete,  Colec- 
cion de  Viages,  torn.  iii.  no.  13.)  The  oldest  m.ips  of  this  country, 
whether  from  ignorance  or  design,  bring  it  twenty-two  degrees  east  of 
its  proper  longitude,  so  that  the  whole  of  the  vast  tract  now  compre- 
hended under  the  name  of  Brazil  would  fall  on  the  Portuguese  side 
of  the  partition-line  agreed  on  by  the  two  governments,  which,  it  will 
be  rememljered,  was  removed  to  three  hundred  and  seventy  leagues 
west  of  the  Cape  de  Verd  Islands.  The  Spanish  court  made  some 
show  at  first  uf  resisting  the  pretensions  of  the  Portuguese,  by  prepa- 
rations for  establishing  a  colony  on  the  northern  extremity  of  the 
Brazilian  territory.  (Navarrete,  Coleccion  de  Viages  torn.  iii.  p.  39.) 
It  is  not  easy  to  understand  how  it  came  fin.aJly  to  admit  these  preten- 
sions. Any  correct  admeasurement  with  the  Castilian  league  would 
only  have  included  the  fringe,  as  it  were,  of  the  northeastern  prom- 
ontory of  Brazil.  The  Portuguese  league,  allowing  seventeen  to  a 
degree,  may  have  been  adopted,  which  would  embrace  nearly  the 

W 


5o6 


SPANISH  COLONIAL   POLICY, 


While  the  colonial  empire  of  Spain  was  thus  every 
day  enlarging,  the  man  to  whom  it  was  all  due  was 
never  permitted  to  know  the  extent  or  the  value  of  it. 
He  died  in  the  conviction  in  which  he  lived,  that 
the  land  he  had  reached  was  the  long-sought  Indies. 
But  it  was  a  country  far  richer  than  the  Indies ;  and, 
had  he  on  qiiitting  Cuba  struck  into  a  westerly  instead 
of  southerly  direction,  it  would  have  carried  him  into 
the  very  depths  of  the  golden  regions  whose  existence 
he  had  so  long  and  vainly  asserted.  As  it  was,  he 
"only  opened  the  gates,"  to  use  his  own  language,  for 
others  more  fortunate  than  himself;  and,  before  he 
quitted  Hispaniola  for  the  last  time,  the  young  adven- 
turer arrived  there  who  was  destined,  by  the  conquest 
of  Mexico,  to  realize  all  the  magnificent  visions,  wliich 
had  been  derided  as  only  visions,  in  the  lifetime  of 
Columbus. 

whole  territory  which  passed  under  the  name  of  Brazil  in  the  best 
ancient  maps,  extending  from  Para  on  'he  north  to  the  great  river  of 
San  Pedro  on  the  south.  (See  Malte-Brun,  Universal  Geography 
(Boston,  1824-9),  book  91.)  Mariana  seems  willing  to  help  the  Por- 
tuguese, by  running  the  partition-line  one  hundred  leagues  farther 
west  than  they  claimed  themselves.    Hist,  de  Espana,  tom.  ii.  p.  607. 


The  discovery  of  the  New  World  was  tortunately  reserved  for  a 
period  when  the  human  race  was  sufficiently  enlightened  to  form  some 
conception  of  its  importance.  Public  attention  was  promptly  and 
eagerly  directed  to  this  momentous  event,  so  that  few  facts  worthy  of 
note,  during  the  whole  progress  of  discovery  from  its  earliest  epoch, 
escaped  contemporary  record.  Many  of  these  notices  have,  indeed, 
perished  through  neglect,  in  the  various  repositories  in  which  t  jey  were 
scattered.  The  researches  of  Navarrete  have  rescued  many,  and  will, 
it  is  to  be  hoped,  rescue  many  more,  from  their  progress  to  oblivion. 
I'he  first  two  volumes  of  his  compilation,  containing  the  journals  and 


SPANISH  COLONIAL  POLICY. 


507 


he 


letters  of  Columbus,  the  correspondence  of  the  sovereigns  with  him, 
and  a  vast  quantity  of  public  and  private  documents,  form,  as  I  have 
ebewhere  remarked,  the  most  authentic  basis  for  a  history  of  that 
great  man.  Next  to  these  in  importance  is  the  "  History  of  the  Ad- 
miral," by  his  son  Ferdinand,  whose  own  experience  and  opportuni- 
ties, combined  with  uncommon  hterary  attainments,  eminently  quali- 
fied him  for  recording  his  father's  extraordinary  life.  It  must  be 
allowed  that  he  has  done  this  with  a  candor  and  good  faith  seldom 
warped  by  any  overweening,  though  natural,  partiality  for  his  subject. 
His  work  met  with  a  whimsical  fate.  The  original  was  early  lost,  but 
happily  not  before  it  had  been  translated  into  the  Italian,  from  which 
a  Spanish  version  was  afterwards  made ;  and  from  this  latter,  thus  re- 
produced in  the  same  tongue  in  which  it  originally  appeared,  are  de- 
rived the  various  translations  of  it  into  the  other  languages  of  Europe. 
The  Spanish  version,  which  is  incorporated  into  Barcia's  collection,  is 
executed  in  a  slovenly  manner,  and  is  replete  with  chronological  inac- 
curacies ;  a  circumstance  not  very  wonderful,  considering  the  curious 
transmigration  it  has  undergone. 

Another  contemporary  author  of  great  value  is  Peter  Martyr,  who 
took  so  deep  an  interest  in  the  nautical  enterprise  of  his  day  as  to 
make  it,  independently  of  the  abundant  notices  scattered  through  his 
correspondence,  the  subject  of  a  separate  work.  His  history,  "  De 
Rebus  Oceanicis  et  Novo  Orbe,"  has  all  the  value  which  extensive 
learning,  a  reflecting,  philosophical  inind,  and  intimate  familiarity  with 
the  principal  actors  in  the  scenes  he  describes,  can  give.  Indeed,  that 
no  source  of  information  might  be  wanting  to  him,  the  sovereigns  au- 
thorized him  to  be  present  at  the  Council  of  the  Indies  whenever  any 
communication  was  made  to  that  body  respecting  the  progress  of  dis- 
covery. The  principal  defects  of  his  work  arise  from  the  precipitate 
manner  in  which  the  greater  part  of  it  was  put  together,  and  the  con- 
sequently imperfect  and  occasionally  contradictory  statements  which 
appear  in  it.  But  the  honest  intentions  of  the  author,  who  seems  to 
have  been  fully  sensible  of  his  own  imperfections,  and  his  liberal  spirit, 
are  so  apparent  as  to  disarm  criticism  in  respect  to  comparatively  venial 
errors. 

But  the  writer  who  has  furnished  the  greatest  supply  of  materials 
for  the  modern  historian  is  Antonio  de  Herrera.  He  did  not  flourish, 
indeed,  until  near  a  century  after  the  discovery  of  America;  but  the 
post  which  he  occupied  of  historiographer  of  the  Indies  gave  him  free 
access  to  the  most  authentic  and  reserved  sources  of  information.   He 


5o8 


SPANISH  COLONIAL   POLICY. 


has  availed  himself  of  these  with  great  freedom ;  transcribing  whole 
chapters  from  the  unpublished  narratives  of  his  predecessors,  espe- 
cially of  the  good  bishop  Las  Casas,  whose  great  work,  "  Cr6nica  de 
las  Indias  occidentales,"  contained  too  much  that  was  offensive  to 
national  feeling  to  be  allowed  the  honors  of  the  press.  The  Apostle 
of  the  Indians,  however,  lives  in  the  pages  of  Herrera,  who,  while  he 
has  omitted  the  tumid  and  overheated  declamation  of  the  original,  is 
allowed  by  the  Castilian  critics  to  have  retained  whatever  is  of  most 
value,  and  exhibited  it  in  a  dress  far  superior  to  that  of  his  predecessor. 
It  must  not  be  omitted,  however,  that  he  is  also  accused  of  occasional 
inadvertence  in  stating  as  fact  what  Las  Casas  only  adduced  as  tradi- 
tion or  conjecture.  His  "  Historia  general  de  las  Indias  occidentales," 
bringing  down  the  narrative  to  1554,  was  published  in  four  volumes,  a' 
Madrid,  in  1601.  Herrera  left  several  other  histories  of  the  difTereui. 
states  of  Europe,  and  closed  his  learned  labors  in  1625,  at  the  age  of 
seventy-five. 

No  Spanish  historian  had  since  arisen  to  contest  the  palm  with  Her- 
rera on  his  own  ground,  until,  at  the  close  of  the  last  century,  Don 
Juan  Bautista  Munoz  was  commissioned  by  the  government  to  pre- 
pare a  history  of  the  New  World.  The  talents  and  liberal  acquisitions 
of  this  scholar,  the  free  admission  opened  to  him  in  every  place  of 
public  and  private  deposit,  and  the  immense  mass  of  materials  col- 
lected by  his  indefatigable  researches,  authorized  the  most  favorable 
auguries  of  his  success.  These  were  justified  by  the  character  of  the 
first  volume,  which  brought  the  narrative  of  early  discovery  to  the 
period  of  Bobadilla's  mission,  written  in  a  perspicuous  and  agreeable 
style,  with  such  a  discriminating  selection  of  incident  and  skilful  ar- 
rangement as  convey  the  most  distinct  impression  to  the  mind  of  the 
reader.  Unfortunately,  the  untimely  death  of  the  author  crushed  his 
labors  in  the  bud.  Their  fruits  were  not  wholly  lost,  however.  Senor 
Navarrete,  availing  himself  of  them,  in  connection  with  those  derived 
from  his  own  extensive  investigations,  is  pursuing  in  part  the  plan  of 
Munoz,  by  the  publication  of  original  documents;  and  Mr.  Irving  he  . 
completed  this  design  in  regard  to  the  early  history  of  Spanish  disco' 
ery,  by  the  use  which  he  has  made  of  these  materials  in  constructing 
out  of  them  the  noblest  monument  to  the  memory  of  Columbus. 


END   OF   VOL.  II. 


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